


A real family

by ashen_girl44



Series: Without you [1]
Category: Ugly Betty
Genre: Adopted Children, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Unplanned Pregnancy, Unresolved Emotional Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-23
Updated: 2016-12-23
Packaged: 2018-09-11 11:25:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 26,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8977765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ashen_girl44/pseuds/ashen_girl44
Summary: The first chapter is really a prologue, however the real 'chapter 1' is where the AU starts. This will be an AU story, but the whole AU is explained in the story. while certain events will be changed forever, this is going to be closely linked to cannon for natural progression of the story. there will be some of the same relationships (sorry in advance) but it will still be detty- in the end! I promise!





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> this is just the prologue, which doesn't explain that much, the chapter is also short, however, the next one will be longer.

 

* * *

Prologue. 2014

* * *

she looked under the bed, her frizzy black hair falling into her face, as she brushed it out of the way in irritation. Why did the others have to hide her things? especially her glasses, she needed them to see!  
  
That was one downside to boarding school, when a bunch of girls were locked up together they got really mean, especially when you were one of the only three permanent residents in your year group, which meant you got special privileges. Ones to make up for the fact that you didn’t have a family. Rosa had never known hers, she didn’t like to think of it, however. It would fill her with a sense of longing that couldn’t be removed, except for emergency intervention in the way of cookies and new books.  
  
She didn’t know how to reach out to her family, and spent an unusual amount of time for a seven-year-old looking up adoption stories on her laptop that her favourite matron and best friend had given her. all the other girls brought stuff with them in shiny pink suitcases, as well as designer clothes for weekend trips to the seaside or shopping centers. They all told tales of amazing lands where they went on holiday. To Rosa it was as good as make believe. She hadn’t even been out of England in her short life.  
  
She didn’t mind looking different from the other girls, she was plump, with tan skin, and big blue eyes that were concealed with her red round plastic frames, but being a teacher’s pet made her a prime target for some of the meaner ones. That is normally how her glasses went missing. After she had changed from doing PE, she would often find her signature red glasses in a place that she couldn’t remember. she was going to have to start to hide them from the others, just so she could locate them without having to call in matron Jane.  
  
It happened anyway, with this newest incident of the missing glasses, as matron Jane walked into her dorm, which she shared with only one other girl, while Rosa was under her bed, looking for the glasses in the dusty volumes of old books there too.  
  
“Rosa, what are you doing? Supper is in ten minutes,” she extracted herself, upon hearing the kind yet somewhat exasperated voice.  
  
“glasses again, Jane. I think Madison hid them!” she said, passionately throwing herself on the bed.  
  
“we cannot be sure of that, and please don’t go accusing her again… she is having a difficult time, since her father told her that he was moving to America.” Matron Jane said and Rosa hoisted herself onto the bed, wrapping her arms around her knees.  
  
“I know, I feel bad that I even said it was her! I just don’t like it when she gangs up with the others and they all make fun of me. she is a permanent resident too!” Rosa huffed, feeling awful about what she had said, even if it may be accurate.  
  
“I know, but she is going through a very difficult time right now, her father came to visit her yesterday,” Rosa listened. As much as it made her jealous on hearing stories about other girl’s families she liked it. she liked hearing the stories of big brothers that got arrested, or little sisters that would be coming here in the fall. She liked hearing about kind dads that took their families on expensive holiday’s and mom’s that baked cookies and were super models. she liked imaging she would have a family to go home to when it was half term, a dog that she could play with in the garden while her siblings spoke to her parents.  
  
“really? Is she okay?” Rosa got very involved in the lives of others, and while some may call it nosy… she called it compassionate.  
  
“yes… he is going back to the united states and leaving her here… she is really sad and could use a friend,” Jane advised her and Rosa nodded. If there was something she was good at, it was cheering people up. Madison shared a room with her, and although they were sworn enemies during term time they were… okay the rest of the time.  
  
“poor her.” Rosa said sincerely, looking down at her yellow dress as part of her uniform and sighed “I wish she didn’t take it out on my glasses though!” she sniffed again as Jane nodded, leaving the room. she came back shortly with Madison, who did indeed have her glasses. Jane left shortly as Madison put them on her bedside table, while Rosa looked anywhere but at the offending objects.  
  
“I didn’t take them,” Madison said in a small voice, sitting on her bed. Rosa looked up at her, seeing she was being sincere and nodded.  
  
“thanks for bringing them back. Where did you find them?”  
  
“in the changing rooms, after gym. You left them in your locker and Philippa thought it would be a good idea to hide them, but I didn’t join in. but… I didn’t stop them either. I’m sorry, Rosa.” Madison collapsed back on her bed, looking at her designer trainers, while Rosa looked at her own ones. Matron Jane had taken her out to buy them for gym class, and they were worn ugly things, with rubber soles that squeaked as she ran, but she didn't have rich parent's to buy her things.  
  
“it is okay… Maddie,” they shared a smile.  
  
She and Madison couldn’t have looked more different. Rosa was shorter and plumper than the others, with curly black hair, as well as her dentist said that she would need braces when she got all her adult teeth in. Madison was perfect, with flowy blonde curls that _never_ went frizzy, as well as being one of the tallest and skinniest girls in the class. On the rare occasion that her dad did come to visit he would comment on how she could be a model… just like her mum.  
  
But, away from all the other girls, with their torments and giggles that carried through the hall ways her and Madison were best friends. They always had fun, playing pretend fashion shows while Madison would model the clothes and Rosa would write about it. Madison always tried to get her to join her on stage, however Rosa refused, but Madison did know a few of Rosa’s secrets. Like all the drawings of clothes she did in private and hid under her bed. and her dreams for a real family.  
  
Rosa spent all night sometimes thinking of why her parents left her here, what were they like? Who were they? She always thought they were rich, simply because of an overheard conversation that she wasn’t supposed to hear. Rosa didn’t know that staying in this private boarding school, all the time cost a lot of money… that was pre-paid for.  
  
She started to build up clues to find out what was going on, which would hopefully lead her to what was going on. because she didn’t have any leads apart from her name: Rosa Claire Suarez, and the necklace around her neck.


	2. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where it diverges from cannon, although there are going to be time jumps to explain some aspects of their journey. In this part there is a rewind to 2007 to explain everything.

 

* * *

CHAPTER 1: 2007

  
5:13 am

* * *

  
  
  
“I shouldn’t worry about it Daniel… I mean, you are Daniel Meade, if anyone is going to bounce back from this, it will be you,” Betty’s reassuring words cut through the cold night air as she smiled up at Daniel, so coolly nonchalant that she wondered if he was affected at all by the sad sequence of events.  They stood on the bridge after the Sofia fiasco, being remedied by bad singing and even worse wine. Not to mention to the comfort of a best friendship.  
  
“I know Betty, but sometimes that isn’t to my advantage. It is bad enough that the first woman I ever truly loved broke up with me, but she managed to further wreck my image in doing so,” Betty looked at Daniel sympathetically. As a little girl, she didn’t think rich people had problems because they always appeared so happy. But she knew that it wasn’t the case with Daniel. his family had more problems than she could ever imagine happening to her family. However, something Daniel said shocked her more than the reality check on her childhood day dreams.  
  
“you have never loved a woman, truly?”  
  
“not properly, I had episodes where I thought I loved someone then looking back on it, I don’t think I did,” Betty smiled as a sudden thought came back to her.  
  
“huh,”  
  
“what?” Daniel asked with a hint of interest in his voice.  
  
“nothing,” Betty quickly covered, not wanting to say it in case it offended Daniel.  
  
“nuh, huh. Tell me!” he ordered, however his tone was light. They had made the pact to return to the bridge whenever it was time to reminisce, or they just needed to talk.  
  
“well, I always imagined you were a playboy because you got your heartbroken and never wanted that to happen again- so you only did causal,” Betty theorised, and the thoughtful look on her face made him laugh. She looked up at him chuckling, not sure whether it was the tiredness or the cheap karaoke restaurant wine, or was he… laughing? “what? Why are you laughing about it?”  
  
“because that is so cheesy… and why would anyone do that?”  
  
“that isn’t cheesy, and it is about a broken heart. But, if that isn’t it, then why are you a playboy?” Betty asked, feeling quite cold as the winds whipped around them on the bridge.  
  
“because it was all a competition, with Alex. If he couldn’t have something, then I couldn’t. so, I went after the one thing that he couldn’t do naturally. He only went after girls if I had dated them first,” Daniel chuckled and Betty bit her lip, then turned to him, about to ask the question she had been afraid to since the beginning.  
  
“do you think you will ever stop wanting to be a playboy?” she asked, wishing for a food substance to eat to distract herself from Daniel’s gaze.  
  
“I don’t know Betty, I think… maybe… one day, I want to find the right woman. I thought Sofia was it,”  
  
“I think there are loads of the right women, just waiting for you,”  
  
“really? Because most of them just seem interested in my money, or my…” Daniel trailed off, looking a little embarrassed.  
  
“body?”  
  
“yep, thanks Betty, for filling that in,” he said, the expression on his face read somewhere between awkwardness and joy. It made Betty blush in unison with him.  
  
“I am just stating the obvious… it is what everyone says. You would not believe the amount of times that Amanda had come up and said-,” Betty stopped, remembering how most of Amanda’s comments weren’t exactly nice.  
  
“what did she say?” Daniel asked, knowing several things that Amanda had said about Betty, that weren’t exactly complimentary.  
  
“something about how you might turn ugly because you worked with me, or it might make me hot… but she didn’t want to think of that because she had just had breakfast,” Betty laughed at that, thinking back to the absurdity of Amanda’s comments- even if some of them were a little hurtful.  
  
“I wouldn’t listen to her… I think you are beautiful,” Daniel said, taking a moment to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear. Betty blushed and looked away, not wanting to hear the lies he would tell her just to make her feel better.  
  
“are you drunk on cheap wine?” Betty asked, tilting her head slightly so that her hair fell out of place.  
  
“no… I think you are very beautiful. Betty, you need to have more faith in yourself. You still think the only type of beauty exists when people are 6ft tall and weigh next to nothing. There is other beauty in the world… real beauty,”  
  
“really? Like who?”  
  
“Sofia may have been ugly on the inside, but she was pretty hot? And she isn’t a size 0,” Daniel said raising his eyebrows at her, and Betty nodded. She gestured to her face after a couple of seconds of silence when it was just Betty and Daniel staring into each other’s eyes, back lit by the twinkling light of the city.  
  
“what about the glasses and the braces… and the hair?” she said, and Daniel raised his eyebrows at that even more.  
  
“those braces aren’t going to stay on forever, and I quite like the hair… it is cute. But know that your looks can be changed easily, what is inside is what counts. When me and Sofia were together, about a third of her time was spent at the spa or the hairdressers, or wherever else.” Daniel chuckled and Betty grinned. She felt happy, since Daniel seemed to be growing as a person, and she didn’t have that weighing on her conscious every second of the day… mainly as in, what mistake was Daniel going to make today?  
  
“I don’t want to change for anyone but myself. And I don’t want to gain peoples respect by changing my appearance, I want to earn it!” Betty said passionately, unaware of how much Daniel was staring at her.  
  
“okay… you win. I think it is time for us to go home? Huh?” he said, kissing her gently on the cheek, which shocked Betty as most of the blood flooded to that certain area on her face, and she was pretty sure she was glowing.  
  
“yeah,” Betty said, tenderly feeling her forehead, as she stumbled slightly in her wedged heels. She saw Daniel’s face flash over with a look of concern as she righted herself and bit her lip.  
  
“maybe we should just go back to mine?” Daniel suggested, Betty yawned.  
  
“I don’t want to intrude… plus my family are probably already panicking,” Betty looked down at her phone and was startled to see that she had no missed calls, no messages… nothing! They normally called her hourly when she was doing overtime at the office.  
  
“you won’t be intruding. You need to sleep and so do I… not to mention I think we are still a little bit drunk from that cheap wine. I didn’t realise it would be so strong!” he said with a face of surprise. Betty nodded, too tired to argue as she came to reality with the lateness of the hour, and leant her head against Daniel’s chest.  
  
“yeah… cheap wine,” she yawned, while Daniel hailed a cab, she looked around when they slid into the backseat in surprise. “wait, we aren’t in a town car?” she heard both the cab driver and Daniel chuckle.

* * *

12:13 pm  
  
Betty woke up the next day feeling oddly warm. Even her bed at home wasn’t this warm, despite Hilda mucking with the thermostat to make the house actually warm. Betty turned slightly, and even through her foggy vision she could see that it wasn’t actually her room. it was Daniel’s, complete with the disgusting mural. And… yep. That was Daniel asleep next to her.  
  
She looked over at him, an ache in her body from twisting around. His arm was slung over her bare waist, as he cradled her closer to him. Betty didn’t know what to do, she was naked, in Daniel Meade’s bed, and she was too tired to recollect how she got there. Betty surveyed the room from her point of view, still encased in the crisp white sheets. There were their clothes strewn all over the room. _that’s where they went_! As well as a few of her more delicate items flung to far corner.  
  
She remembered flashes of that night, however she didn’t remember what exactly was going on. she thought it was just a dream, a sex dream, about Daniel. something not totally unbelievable, since she has had a few, never spoken about, only written about- since the embarrassment of fantasising about your hot boss was too much to bear.  
  
Betty tried to slip from Daniel’s grasp, and out of the bed, in some attempt to convince him that she didn’t sleep with him, instead on the couch… fully clothed.  
  
However, the surprise and shock of it all seemed to make her legs jelloid, and instead of slipping away quietly, collecting her clothes and assuming an innocent position on the couch, like she had planned; she fell ungracefully onto Daniel’s hard wood floor, with a resounding bump.  
  
“ow!” she said, rubbing her butt from where she fell, acutely aware that she was naked, and- oh crap! Daniel was waking up. She saw him blearily sit up among his white sheets and look around the room, coming to rest on Betty. His eyes went wide, as he too sprung from the bed, managing to wrap a sheet around himself.  
  
Betty felt extremely self-conscious. Here she was, naked and sitting on his floor while Daniel looked panicked. Daniel was fine, he was hot and he knew it. however, Betty was short and _not_ a size 0, or even 2. Before this she hadn’t even let Daniel see her upper arm, however he was getting a full view of…well, everything. But it was everything that he had already seen. Betty moved slowly, wrapping the sheet around her as she got up, hoping that Daniel could talk to her without his eyes being drawn to other locations. She couldn’t believe her slightly drunk and tired mind. she slept with Daniel, just because he called her beautiful.  
  
Betty was just so confused by the whole situation, she never thought something like this would happen, not even in her wildest dreams did she imagine she would wake up in the arms of Daniel- _naked_! She knew that it wasn’t totally strange, although she was more confused as to why Daniel would ever sleep with her. not the other way around. It was strange: something she had wanted to happen pretty much since she became to be friends with him… but it made her feel so guilty. Because- Walter!  
  
She couldn’t believe it! she had cheated on Walter, and they had just gotten back together. Still, he had cheated on her, but it wasn’t right to repay the favour. She wouldn’t be a cheater too, but it was just too late.  
  
She couldn’t imagine doing something like that, especially not with New York’s biggest playboy and trust fund baby; Daniel Meade. Regardless of him being one of her closet friends, it was still a little weird to think about them… doing that, and judging by the equally shocked expression on Daniel’s face he felt the same.

“Betty… I erm… I didn’t think you would wake up first,” he said, at the sound of his voice her memories came flooding back.

* * *

 

5:34 am (the same day)  
  
They got into his building, the little nap Betty had in the back of the cab was enough for her to remain awake. She walked up to the elevator, smiling at Daniel, who seemed completely out of it himself. While they waited, he smiled at her, gently taking her hand and holding it in his larger one.  
  
“are you okay, Daniel?”  
  
“yeah, I just need some coffee,” he stifled a yawn, as they stepped into the elevator. They made it up to his loft, where Daniel went to his kitchen and Betty sat in the living room.  
  
Betty sat on the chair in Daniel’s living room, it was so sparsely furnished she didn’t know whether or not she could classify it as a living room. she was exhausted, however there was something thrilling about being in Daniel’s apartment when it wasn’t to make sure he had enough food that he didn’t starve or to stock up his dry cleaning.  
  
She watched as he went through the cupboards in his kitchen and eventually came back out, instead of holding two cups of hot coffee like Betty hoped he would, Daniel was holding two tumblers of scotch. She frowned at him, knowing they were slightly inebriated already, but Betty needed something to drink, whether or not it was a nightcap was irrelevant.  
  
“sorry, I didn’t have any coffee. I really need to get supplies,”  
  
“do you want me to go grocery shopping for you, or can you do it yourself?” Betty asked, bringing a notepad out of her coat pocket. Daniel stared in surprise.  
  
“do you always have that on you, or is it just a coincidence?” Daniel sipped his scotch and Betty put her notepad down, before tentatively sipping her own. She made a face and spluttered as the burning liquid slid down her throat. “haven’t you ever drunk scotch before?” Betty spluttered again, putting the tumbler down on the table while grimacing.  
  
“no, don’t forget Daniel, I am only twenty-two, I have only been legally allowed to drink for a year!” she reiterated and returned to her notepad. Daniel put his hand on it, and slid it towards him.  
  
“Betty, you are not on the clock anymore, put that away,” he said sternly, to which Betty responded by grabbing the note pad from his hands and clutching it to her chest.  
  
“I need this, it has important notes in it,” Betty said, clutching it to her chest tighter as Daniel shot a sceptical glance at her. Betty could easily hide the real reason why she didn’t show anyone her notebook, because she might have written some rather naughty thoughts about Daniel in it, and letting him see them wouldn’t be good for anyone. It was hard not to fantasise when she had a boss as hot as Daniel Meade. But that didn’t mean she had to let anyone see what she had written.  
  
“important notes? Can I see them please?” he said, holding out his hand, brazened by the scotch. Betty shook her head and kept the book clutched closer to her chest.  
  
“they aren’t all about you, in fact-,” she flipped to a blank page, “the only thing I wrote about you, was: get groceries, and make sure he has clean suits for ‘rise and shine America’ so you don’t need to look at it,” she stated, flipping the notebook shut.  
  
“you weren’t even my assistant then?”  
  
“I wanted to do something nice, since you were quite nervous about being engaged,” Betty said, looking at the shiny pink pad in her hands. then back at Daniel, who smiled somewhat morosely.  
  
“please let me have a look, I want to see your writing,”  
  
“why? When you read that hotel review, you didn’t even like it,” she said defensively, taking to notepad and folding it under her arms.  
  
“the reason why I didn’t publish that is because it was you pretending to be a MODE girl… not that you aren’t- I am not saying this very well, am I?”  he asked and Betty shook her head, nonetheless smiling at him.  
  
“no!”  
  
“what I meant, is I like your writing, when it is you writing it, in your voice. I don’t want you to copy Amanda’s or even mine,”  
  
“but Wilhelmina said that the writers are paid to imitate her voice,” Betty argued and Daniel sighed.  
  
“yes, for MODE, however you need to find your voice first before you write in anyone else’s.” Betty mused on that. Even though Daniel may be somewhat irresponsible he wasn’t stupid, he went to Harvard, partied all the time and still graduated. This advice made sense, she had tried too hard to be something she wasn’t, to imitate something she couldn’t- when she just needed to write in her own voice.  
  
“thanks Daniel,” she slackened her grip on the book, feeling the need for approval. There were some stories in there that weren’t re-written sex dreams, instead ideas for articles, that she wouldn’t mind Daniel to read. She removed the notepad from the crook of her arm; before opening it to the right page and passing it to Daniel.  
  
“here you go, this is about my sister, and how she lived with Justin… though it may be a bit exaggerated,” Betty had written about Hilda’s struggle to be a single mother, while still wanting to be in the dating pool. She watched Daniel’s reaction as he read it and chuckled. Betty decided to take another sip of her scotch and grimaced. “can I go to get some water please?” Betty asked, while Daniel nodded, still engrossed by the article.  
  
“sure thing,” while Betty went to get the water, Daniel turned to next page, expecting to see more of Hilda and all the crazy stuff she and Betty got up to as kids. It made him smile, his assistant was a really good writer, her voice was excellent, although she might need some training on how to imitate other’s voices. However, as he flicked through Daniel noticed his name come up on a page and turned back. He didn’t want to intrude, but he wondered what Betty had wrote about him. he half expected it to say something like how much of a jerk he was, instead it was saying something very different.  
  
_I didn’t think this would happen, it just seemed impossible, for someone like me, to be involved with someone like Daniel. I am just someone from queens, not even beautiful like my sister, undesirable… however he made me feel as if nothing could touch me… as if I was perfect as I was._  
  
Daniel skimmed through more of it, most of it was about how inadequate Betty felt to her peers. Daniel’s heart sank, he hated it that Betty would feel that way, she was beautiful and if only there was some way he could show her that. He took a quick glance towards the kitchen, where he could see the outline of Betty bending over to pick up something. He remembered how the kitchen was still a state with a numerous amount, of takeout boxes littering the floor. _Betty must be cleaning up_ , Daniel thought to himself and smiled then continued to read.  
  
_However, there was one way I knew I could feel beautiful and desired. And Daniel could give that to me. I went into his office, the lights were dimmed ever so slightly, so that we could still see each other and the infamous outline of New York city beyond us outside the windows._  
_“Betty, what are you doing here?” Daniel asked, his voice low and rough, that very voice sent shivers down to my very core…_  
_“Daniel I just wanted to say something. Why don’t you think of me as beautiful?”_  
_“I do, Betty, honestly.”_  
_“show me then!” I said, coming up to in front of Daniel’s desk, feeling my chest heave at the monumental moment. He stepped out from behind his desk, and quickly closed his mouth over mine, while his large hands slid over my waist and dug into the flesh there-_  
  
Daniel dropped the book, hastily flipping it back to the article about Hilda, although his mind told him to go back and look at what Betty had written. He knew it was an invasion of her privacy, but it was about him… and Betty. She had basically written smut, but he didn’t know how far it went. And Daniel certainly wanted to know what caused it. he had to fight not to turn back to the page, it wouldn't be fair to look at betty's private thoughts, even if they were about him... and her.  
  
Betty had said that he was hot… maybe she just fantasised about him, like he did about taking Betty on his desk. If they both had the same fantasy… then…  
  
Daniel’s thoughts were racing around his head and he wasn’t sure what was going on, except that Betty had written about them making love, and said it would make her feel beautiful. Daniel would definitely do that if it was what it took to make Betty feel beautiful. she came back, holding the glass of water in one hand and stifling a yawn with the other.  
  
She stopped when she saw Daniel holding the notepad, but that was mainly because he couldn’t get the look of shock off of his face.  
  
“did you like my article?” Betty said, including her cheery assistant voice to try and diffuse the charged air. It was thick with tension.  
  
“yeah,” Daniel squeaked, his expression betraying him.  
  
“you saw it huh?” Betty said, sitting down on the couch next to Daniel and turning the pages, landing in what she had written.  
  
“yeah… I did, I am so sorry Betty, I was just looking for the end of your article,” Daniel said, while Betty looked away, biting her lip, and at the same time pushing her glasses up her nose.  
  
“I forgot I didn’t write the end to it, as I said this was just an idea’s pad, I didn’t think that anything would come about from it,” Betty smiled weakly, although Daniel could see that there were tears in her eyes.  
  
“Betty… hey, don’t cry,”  
  
“aren’t you disappointed in me? I mean, it is so unprofessional,” she tried to stop her voice cracking, although it didn’t do anything to prevent the tears rolling down her cheeks.  
  
“look who you are talking to here, I mean you only got hired because-,”  
  
“you wouldn’t sleep with me!” Betty said, another sob rising into her throat. Daniel felt his heart stutter a bit, he couldn’t stand it when anyone cried, but especially not Betty. He quickly threw the notepad back onto the table with a soft bump, then encasing Betty in his arms.  
  
“is that what you want to happen?” his tone was sincere, as he wished that Betty would think that too.  
  
“no!” she wiped the tears from her eyes “it isn’t that Daniel, it is just, I know I am not beautiful, but when someone confirms it and thinks it is a legitimate reason to hire someone, I just don’t know,” she looked down at her clasped hands.  
  
“Betty, my dad is an ass. He doesn’t see what is on the inside at all, sometimes I think that is why my brother killed himself, since dad never supported him through the paths he wanted to go on. he may have been a fantastic editor, but he was good at most things. But, he was never just allowed to: be,” Daniel said, trying to spin Betty around to face him.  
  
“it doesn’t matter, I still feel ugly, and you know I am not that concerned about my appearance,” Betty said, her tone was still light however Daniel knew that wasn’t the case when more tears brimmed on her eyelashes.  
  
“I know how I can help,” Daniel said, before he kissed her. he wasn’t doing this out of pity, but he would do anything to let Betty know that she is beautiful. friends look out for their friends, even if it is in unorthodox fashions. It might even quench some of his feelings towards Betty. He didn’t know why he wanted to make those feelings go away, maybe because it scared him.  
  
He hadn’t really had feelings before Sofia, with those only developing after a lot of physical intimacy. He didn’t know whether or not he had loved a woman platonically who wasn’t related to him, but he did with Betty. He couldn’t stop it from growing in his mind into something more than platonic, even if they had never made love, or even kissed, until now.  
  
They kept kissing, as he gently moved down to her lips and caressed them gently. It was enough to make Betty jump, but that only sunk her deeper into the kiss. he didn’t know which way was up at this point, and it felt like his whole life had been waiting for this moment.  
  
They kissed for a few moments, although it cannot have been more than a minute it felt like eternity. He kissed her deeper, his tongue begging for entrance into her mouth, which turned to kisses along her jaw, neck and down to her collarbone. Betty’s entire body was on fire, more than he had ever felt it during anything Walter ever did. When Daniel nibbled on her skin, sucking and then peppering it with kisses her spine tingled, and she never wanted him to stop.  
  
But eventually she pulled away from him and stared at him, straight into his blue eyes which she was sure could see right into her soul.  
  
“Daniel why are you doing this? for pity, because I don’t want to be another ‘Daniel Meade girl’, especially if it is spurred on by pity!” Betty said angrily, getting up from her seat and glaring at him.  
  
“Betty, why I kissed you has nothing to do with pity, and I don’t think that you could get away with being another ‘Daniel Meade girl’. You know more about my life than anyone, please… just give me a chance to show you that you are beautiful,” he said before he kissed her again. Daniel shifted so that Betty was resting on his lap as she breathed out the word that he desperately needed to hear.  
  
“yes,”


	3. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this may not be seeming very detty right now, but I might update a bit quicker than the usual once every other day... since we have a lot to get through, I do warn you, it is pretty angsty though! this is where we start to progress through the cannon events around Daniel and Betty- so there will be a few jumps, although they will be based around certain episodes.

CHAPTER 2: 2007

* * *

Betty got changed, hurriedly throwing on her clothes that she had discovered around Daniel’s room. she had a quick shower while he was in the kitchen. Currently they were playing a very tactical game of avoiding each other, while Betty had a shower and got dressed Daniel hid in the kitchen, making Betty a very patchy breakfast. While Daniel was in the shower Betty ate that breakfast, looking around Daniel’s room and just being thankful that Daniel actually knew where his food was.   
  
They finally got into a collision- literally- in the kitchen, where a still damp Daniel had walked into Betty, who was finishing cleaning up his kitchen.   
  
“you know you are the only girl who I have ever made love to who cleaned my kitchen after,” Daniel said, trying to lighten the mood. Betty stopped washing up her plate, gently putting it on the drying rack. She couldn’t stop the small smile that was appearing on her lips at the mention of the phrase ‘making love’ because she knew Daniel didn’t refer to his conquests like that. It gave her hope that she was something different, she wasn’t just the usual.   
  
Betty saw Daniel fiddling with his extremely expensive watch, in his casual clothes which she knew cost more than all of her clothes she had ever worn did, but he treated it as if it was something that he didn’t care about. He didn’t care about the cost of stuff. She knew that he was reckless and he was irresponsible. She knew what people would say about her if she even considered dating Daniel. she couldn’t let that happen to either of them. She may have been working hard, but in between the partying and the fiasco with Sofia… Daniel may have been the boss’s son, but the ice was cracking beneath his feet.  
  
They didn’t belong together, and now, only after they had slept together could she see that. She didn’t belong in a world of fancy parties and spiteful ex-girlfriends, she was Betty. She knew as much as Daniel wanted to help she would never mean that much to him… not in that way.   
  
“I am so sorry Daniel,”  
  
“what for? Waking me up?” he cracked a smile.   
  
“no, for letting this get so far,” Betty said, she realised as she watched Daniel out of the corner of her eye that it wasn’t right. They were from two different worlds, and as much as it made her smile at Daniel’s inability to put his $1000 watch on, she realised they were never meant to be.  
  
“what? I thought you wouldn’t regret it?”  
  
“I don’t regret it, I just feel bad because I thought I shouldn’t have let it get this far. It wasn’t professional and it went against the very reason why your father hired me.” she stuttered, frowning as she sat back at the breakfast bar.   
  
“Betty, I don’t feel bad. We are friends… right? Friends stick out for each other, and if you think it was a mistake it is your call. I am not going to force you into anything,” Daniel smiled at her, briefly fighting away the temptation to cup her face, and kiss her again at the sight of her smiling at him.  
  
“okay, I just don’t think this is right for either of us,” she tried to say, although half the words got stuck in her throat.   
  
“maybe you are right, but isn’t it worth a shot?” Daniel rounded towards Betty’s chair and put one arm on the counter in what others would assume was a relaxed position, however Betty knew better than that. Daniel was tense, his shoulders hunched.  
  
“I don’t think it is. Daniel, we have our careers to focus on, and you will get bored of me within a few minutes,”   
  
“no, I won’t! Betty I am serious about how much I respect you. I would never do something like that to hurt you! I can see us, we make sense,”  
  
“maybe to you, but Daniel… not to me,” Betty said. Judging by the look in Daniel’s eyes he didn’t believe her and would keep on persisting until she thought they did. So, she had to lie, to protect herself and Daniel.  
  
“really?”  
  
“yeah, I don’t think this was a mistake, but I don’t think that it can happen again.”  
  
“why not?” Daniel asked, his temper starting to flare, however Betty kept a calm focus on Daniel, even going as far as to place her petite hand over his larger one in an attempt to cajole him into calming down.  
  
“because it wouldn’t be right. It is one thing to have a meaningless fling, but another thing to have a relationship. I don’t think it would be wise, also, I wouldn’t even consider a meaningless fling,” Betty said, looking into Daniel’s eyes. They seemed a darker shade of blue than normal, something that happened to Daniel every time he was trying to suppress his emotions that were bubbling at the surface.   
  
“okay. Is this it then? Are you coming back?” he asked tentatively, afraid to hear the answer. He couldn’t lose her, not now.  
  
“Of course! Daniel, that would be even more unprofessional of me. I am definitely not giving up my job just because we slept together,” she said, her tone clearly implying how ridiculous she thought it was.  
  
“I didn’t want you too, I was just worried it would be too weird at work,” he bit his lip nervously.  
  
“it would only be weird if you let it become weird,” Betty said, smiling wisely at him as she drunk some coffee. Daniel went down to a bodega to get some while she was in the shower, he must have felt extra guilty for staring at her while she was naked.   
  
“who said that?” Daniel asked, unable to keep the grin from his face at how cheesy it sounded.  
  
“Christina,”  
  
“who was she talking about?” Daniel asked, a little part of him would be excited to know if it was him or not.   
  
“it doesn’t matter,” Betty said quickly and then dropped her phone onto the counter, remembering something. “oh, my god! I didn’t tell my family, and frantically scrolled through the contacts.  
  
“Betty, you called them back last night- well this morning, to say that you were staying over. of course, when Hilda questioned you, you just told her that you were going to sleep on the couch.”  
  
“oh, was that just after you kissed me and Hilda rang?”  
  


“yep, then you decided to take another sip on your scotch and started to choke.” Daniel laughed, where judging by the look on Betty’s face she had forgotten about the awkwardness of the morning after and easily morphed back into best friend mode. He didn’t know whether to feel crushed or relieved that he wasn’t screwing up her life as well as all the other's he seemed to mess up. 

* * *

Daniel sat in one of the tents, the show continuing as models traipsed up and down the run way. That designers final model had shocked their world, and the media (which was a first, since, like any accident and police crews, when there was a scandal they were first on the scene). Daniel couldn’t sit back with a half empty bottle of scotch and reflect on his new sister, right down to how he started to hit on her for some stupid bet with becks, before he knew obviously.   
  
Daniel didn’t know what he was doing with his life, and found it easy to revert back into playboy mode. He had been rebuffed by Betty, and assured that she couldn’t and wouldn’t do this… them. It hurt, which led Daniel to be a playboy for the original reason why Betty thought Daniel used to take the stairs to avoid Tuesdays girl, or Amanda. Not because it was good cardio, despite him telling everyone that.  
  
He was even more of a playboy since he got his heart stamped on. he would have cleared up his act, seeing as half of Betty’s excuse had been about how they weren’t in the right place, but she wouldn’t still take that as Daniel’s full commitment. Daniel had a feeling that Betty wouldn’t accept his full commitment. It was like she said she had to live a little first.  
  
Daniel could read in between the lines, especially with the woman who he considered to be his best friend. she didn’t want him, in that way… she had work and it wasn’t right… but he could have done with Betty being by his side now. more than ever.  
  
Daniel walked past the crowd of onlookers, wishing that he had some sort of hood or colourful disguise to wear, so he wouldn’t have people pointing and whispering. He didn’t see Alexis anywhere, so he assumed she must have disappeared through the crowd to go bask in the glory of the flashes from the camera’s.   
  
He eventually walked into where Betty was frantically shouting instructions at a scared bunch of interns.  
  
“hey, Betty. Is everything going okay?” Daniel asked, getting a nod in response. Things had been a bit awkward, when they first went back to work, seeing as they couldn’t look away from each other. But they soon found their rhythm of best friendship again. however, there were still shared glances and their dreams betrayed them, since they were filled only with the longing for each other.   
  
But Daniel didn’t know that, and he could only respect what Betty had said.   
  
“I’m fine. Busy. Luisa, take this to tent C, please, one of the models needs it in ten minutes, go!” Betty shouted at a frightened looking intern who on any other day wouldn’t have even looked at Betty. She suddenly stopped and turned around, aware of Daniel’s presence. “how are you Daniel? how are things with Alexis?”   
  
“I…erm, don’t know. he vanished off to go have an interview or kill the innocent,” Daniel said, huffing. Betty noticed the bottle of champagne loosely hanging by his side and swiped it away from him.  
  
“no champagne for you! Daniel, Alexis isn’t a bad person, she just has a had a lot to deal with,”  
  
“she turned up after two years after he convinced everyone he was dead, then got our father arrested for murder!” Daniel yelled, while Betty frowned at him.  
  
“Daniel, don’t get mad at me! she might not be right doing that, but don’t start a war with her please!” Betty pleaded, ignoring Daniel’s attempts to reclaim the champagne.   
  
Daniel thought about it. why shouldn’t he start a war? Betty had no idea what Alexis had put him through, his family through, it nearly killed his mother. He was mad at Alexis, although he was madder at Betty. How could she just take herself away from him, he had laid his feelings bare as best he could. But she wouldn’t respond.   
  
And then to have his brother-turned sister show up unannounced with a plan to destroy their family even more and a body that would make any man weak, he didn’t know what to think. He needed Betty more than ever, but things weren’t right between them. He knew they would still be able to be best friends, but they needed to mend several bonds that were broken when they saw each other naked, and break several that were made from the first time they kissed.   
  


He didn’t know how he was going to be able to go back, but he knew he would do anything to get there. Even if it meant starting a war with Alexis, just to make sure Betty would still save his ass. 

  
Betty’s latest distraction had gone, and that was pretty much the only thing keeping her sane after Daniel. every time she saw him Betty wanted to jump back into his arms and say that she didn’t mean to leave him again, but it didn’t seem to be working that way.   
  
She had to get out of this mindset, she was the one who broke whatever it was off with Daniel. he wanted her to stay, but she couldn’t. now Daniel’s life was filled with his sister, who he had come to a reluctant truce with, until she found out he was the one who hired the super lawyer to help with his dad’s case. Betty was just happy Walter had gone, she couldn’t keep stringing him along when she didn’t love him anymore.   
  
Mrs Meade had also been arrested the very same day, meanwhile Mr. Meade was reinstated as the head of the company, not to the delight of either Daniel or Alexis. Betty felt sorrowful, since she really liked Mrs. Meade. Within the short time, she had known her they were already good friends, and that didn’t have anything to do with them both disapproving of how Daniel slept with his father’s lawyer!  
  
Betty could have sworn that Daniel kept the parade of women up just to annoy her, but it just made her certain that they weren’t right for each other… even if she went home and cried into her pillow. If Daniel couldn’t mature for her, then she wasn’t sure whether it was meant to be, it didn’t help that through all her conflicting emotions and sense of logic that she was sure that she had fallen in love with Daniel.  
  


It just hurt that every plan she had to move on fell through. Henry had a girlfriend, Dr Farkiss was a buzz-kill and just a bit creepy. Betty was desperately trying to find a way to prove that she wasn’t in love with Daniel. it was going to be harder than she thought to conceal the truth.  

* * *

“marc I don’t see how this is going to work!” Betty said, while the diva huffed at her. they both stood in her childhood bedroom, while she was doing the impossible and ridiculous task of trying to convince marc’s mother that he wasn’t gay. She didn’t know how she could do it, especially when all hell was about to break lose with the stuck-up attitude of marc’s mother, not to mention how Betty thought marc’s mom might need her glasses more than she did.  
  
“it will if you play the part, I don’t see how it is so hard,”  
  
“it is, since my whole family is here, and I need to make sure Daniel was okay,” Betty was a bit concerned about Daniel since Alexis arrived, especially as he didn’t know how to broach the subject of actually sharing MODE. Daniel was adamant that Alexis would try and take over, however Betty wasn’t really sure about that.   
  
Daniel wasn’t good at sharing either, and had gotten very defensive in light of her and henry getting closer to each other. Betty understood why that happened, as both of them were in a phase of not admitting that the feelings for each other were getting stronger. Daniel had actually fist pumped when he heard henry had a girlfriend.  
  
“why is it always about Danny boy? I bet you are sleeping with him!” marc said in an annoyed huff, while Betty’s eyes widened. Marc couldn’t know, he was just going to say the first ridiculous thing that came to mind.   
  
“marc!” Betty responded, hoping he wouldn’t see the flash of fear in her eyes.   
  
“puh-lease Betty, everyone thinks you two are doing it. heaven above… if you actually were?” he looked at Betty inquisitively and Betty glared at marc in response.  
  
“I don’t see how this is relevant to convincing your mother that you are straight,” she said, before leaving the room. she felt bad about lying to marc’s mother. She hated lying, it was one thing Betty never did, that is why she had found the situation with her night at Daniel’s so difficult, since everyone else seemed to be involved.   
  
“come on churro!” marc said, gripping her shoulders, while Betty protested weakly. She didn’t feel so good, and hadn’t felt very well for days. She reluctantly let herself get dragged along by marc.

* * *

 

Daniel had shown up, holding the actual letter from the editor for Betty’s approval. She had a stressful enough night with her father’s stupid ankle bracelet, as well as marc’s snobby mother, who accused Ignacio of stealing something of hers. It had been all manner of alarms and people popping up unannounced, as well as, to Betty’s extreme humiliation Daniel turning up- while Justin said he was Betty’s ex-boyfriend.   
  
That rendered a very awkward explanation, since Betty was unsure about Justin’s motives for telling everyone that her and Daniel used to date. Betty hadn’t told anyone, and as far as they were concerned the night she stayed over was strictly platonic.   
  
Now they were in the back of a town car, where Daniel was stressing about the fate of the magazine. Meanwhile Betty was stressing with the effort of not throwing up all over the backseat of the car. She blames the excitement, and the whole packet of chips she had for lunch.  
  
“Betty, she will always win! He is Alex, it will always be the same.”  
  
“Daniel, I know it seems that way with Alexis… and maybe it is since she went behind your back,” Betty looked at Daniel, who was watching her expectantly. She shook her head to try and clear the swirling thoughts. She wasn’t going to explain the whole fiasco to Daniel, who knew it better than anyone. “…anyway, you just have to learn to work with her, and-,” Betty cut off as the car ground to a halt in the New York traffic, as she felt her stomach turn.  
  
“Betty, are you okay?” Betty nodded, still having her hand tightly pressed against her mouth. “you don’t look okay,” he pressed on. Betty forced herself to speak.  
  
“you need to beat her to the printer, even if you have to run,” Betty said, and made to open the door on Daniel’s side, but he stopped her.  
  
“Betty, I don’t want to leave you here, you don’t look so good,” he argued, sliding his hand along Betty’s back before he realised what he was doing.  
  
“Daniel, I am fine, and your driver is here,” she waved to him in the rear-view mirror and he tipped his cap in response.  
  
“Betty, I am staying. Alexis won anyway, it doesn’t matter-,”  
  
“of course, it matters, it is MODE. And Alexis didn’t even want anything to do with the magazine until she realised it would upset your father.”  
  
“I meant to ask you, where did you learn all of this stuff?” Daniel asked, and Betty smiled, feeling her stomach calm down slightly.  
  
“marc, you know I would do anything to protect you, even be marc’s girlfriend,”  
  
“is that why you did it?” Daniel asked, smiling over at Betty. He felt elated, she would subject herself to lip-gloss related torture for him, that meant she might reconsider!   
  
“for ‘information that could help save your bosses job’? of course!” Betty laughed, smiling at Daniel across the backseat of the town car. “but I still think you should go after her, I am okay, and coming with you,” before Daniel could respond Betty was out of the car and sprinting along the streets. Daniel grinned at her, and followed, clutching his letter in his hand. If nothing else, he wanted this printed.  
  
They rounded a corner, where Betty felt as if she couldn’t breathe, so she let Daniel go on ahead, her smile faltering as Alexis caught up with him. but it didn’t stop the pain she felt when she saw Daniel at that bar later, worried she was going to have to scrape him off of the floor again. but he just insisted that he had a lot of partying to catch up on. she didn’t know what else to say so she trailed dejectedly home, trying not to cry as she felt she had lost Daniel forever.  
  
When she got home and after the talk with marc, she was practically cornered by Hilda the moment she entered her room.  
  
“chica, you have some explaining to do!” her brazen older sister sighed and Betty looked at her in confusion.  
  
“what are you talking about? I just went out with Daniel to try to save the magazine,” Betty assumed an innocent expression, despite how Hilda was looking at her suspiciously, especially with Betty’s diary in her hand. She had written practically her whole experience with Daniel, in very graphic detail.  
  
“I didn’t mean now, because you would have had some nerve to do so! I meant when you ‘slept over’ you obviously meant that in more ways than one,” Hilda reiterated, leaving Betty sitting on her bed with a look of shock and bemusement on her face. it was feigned bemusement, simply because she knew the answer. She was just terrified of the consequences since something else had sprung to mind. something which she may have blurted out to Hilda.


	4. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own ugly Betty

* * *

CHAPTER 3: 2007

* * *

 

“so, you up for a little bit of fun, look what I have?” Christina said, waving around the invitation to this incredibly exclusive club. Betty’s eyes bugged out a bit, and she grinned at Christina, before her smile practically fell off of her face.  
  
“erm, I don’t think I am up to it,” Betty reluctantly admitted. She was trying to think of loopholes in the idea, but she knew Christina would probably try and get her to participate in all the club activities, most of which included drinking.  
  
“what do you mean you aren’t up to it? you seemed so excited,” her friend waved her arms around to emphasise and Betty bit her lip and nodded. She needed to tell someone, and Christina was her best friend (apart from Daniel, who was behaving a bit like a toddler at that point in time)  
  
“well, I don’t think it would be appropriate, especially since I am pregnant,” she squeaked the last word and waited for it to register on Christina’s face. when it did the look of shock was expected. Christina sat heavily down onto a stool, and pressed her palms into her forehead.  
  
“Betty, oh my god! How did that happen, well… obviously, wait!” she stopped having a thought since Betty hadn’t said anything, and instead sat on her own stool, looking around the room, playing with a scarf that was draped over a manikin that weighed less than her shoes. “who is the?” Christina made an obscene gesture with her hands, and Betty’s eyebrows raised.  
  
“I um… it isn’t good. and, oh!” she saw becks going through the hallways, and sprung out of her seat “I just need to tell Daniel-,”  
  
“no, you don’t!” Christina pulled her back down, “why do you fuss so much over him, you aren’t his mother, you are his assistant,”  
  
“maternal instincts, and he needs someone to look after him, seeing as he is incapable of doing it himself,” Betty spat bitterly.   
  
“Betty, stop worrying about the man! He isn’t your responsibility. You are here to book his appointments, not pack his lunch for him!”  
  
“I know, but-,”  
  
“no but’s! you need a Meade free night, starting now, we can order you juice at the club,” Christina said, dragging Betty out of the halls of MODE and into a waiting cab.  
  
They got into the cab, where the driver eyed them dubiously. Christina started the questioning almost immediately.  
  
“so, who is the father,”  
  
“erm…”  
  
“oh, god it isn’t henry, is it? because that would be bad, his girlfriend would kill you!” Christina overreacted, her lined eyes going even wider, and her mouth forming an expression of shock.  
  
“no! I wish,”  
  
“yeah you do wish!” Christina interrupted Betty’s train of thought. Betty shook her head, she knew it appeared to Christina that she had a crush on henry, but she didn’t. he was a distraction from the real man who had stolen her heart… and impregnated her. she knew that in reality she had taken her love away from him, and was making it sound so much more dramatic than it actually was.  
  
“no… it would just be easier if it was henry’s baby,”  
  
“why? Whose kid, is it?”  
  
“erm… Daniel’s,” Betty finally breathed out, clutching hold of the cab driver’s seat for dear life.  
  
“what! You are never going to have another Meade free night again! Betty, you are carrying an heir to a publishing empire in there,” she prodded Betty’s stomach, who hushed Christina and put her hand protectively over her stomach.  
  
“don’t poke the baby, and shh! I bet Wilhelmina has bugged the city,” Betty whispered, moving her friend’s hand away from her slightly swollen belly.   
  
“you are probably right,” Christina looked mournfully out of the window, while Betty watched her.  
  
“is everything okay?” Betty asked, and she nodded.  
  
“yes, luv, I’m fine. I should be asking you that, you are the pregnant one, now how are you going to tell him?”  
  


“I don’t know. But it won’t be tonight.”

* * *

  
Betty looked at the lights of the nightclub, the pulsating, dizzying array of rainbows that made her feel even worse than she already did. She didn’t want Christina to drag her to this place, especially when she was so worried about Daniel. ever since his little loss with Alexis, she was trying to run around clearing up more of his messes than she was physically able to do.  
  
It had gotten so bad that she wondered whether or not the man was trying to make her quit? She had hurt him, and he seemed to be retaliating that idea by parading beautiful women in front of her. part of Betty wanted to scream out in anger protesting his partying ways, however, she was more concerned about preventing him from self-destructing.   
  
It didn’t matter if he was trying to hurt her, he was doing it because he too, was hurt- but she didn’t want him to end up in even worse shape that he was. She didn’t want to go traipsing through clubs while paying the bartender for juice, so the deafening music and wild party goers weren’t altered from the effect of alcohol.   
  
She finally had managed to lose her friend, when a very Quincy Combs related emergency came about. She had accidentally sold out Daniel to the man, which Daniel wasn’t going to forgive her for. Even if he was her boss and he didn’t need her following him around all hours of the day… Betty didn’t feel like that. The man needed a babysitter, otherwise he was going to get himself in a lot of trouble, and she might not be there to bail him out.  
  
When she saw, that Daniel was in the club she felt relieved, allowing herself to know that even though he was being exceptionally stupid he was safe from Quincy combs. Yet… until she saw the distinctive red hat. Daniel would probably think she was following him. still, she wouldn’t need to blame the alcohol when she lost her temper… she could blame something much more life changing.   
  
And still it happened, she still lost her temper and Daniel got mad in response, saying something hurtful. It was just payback to deliver the news like this, although, in hindsight it probably wasn’t for the best to do it in a crowded nightclub with beer soaked shoes from where someone had stumbled.  
  
“…just punch out! When your day is over you are done, got it! leave me to live my life,” Daniel yelled over the music, his face a mixture of mad and hurt all at once. He was about to storm off when Betty caught hold of his arm, Daniel turning around to stare at her in surprise. “Betty, I thought I told you to-,”  
  


“I am just telling you so that you realise you are going to have to take more responsibility if you are going to be a father,” she said, before sweeping out of the club with tears dribbling down her face, that had nothing to do with Christina’s betrayal.

* * *

  
Daniel stood in the club, reaching out as if he could still see Betty there. But she was gone and he wasn’t sure whether or not it was real, was what she said real? He needed to clear his head and get away from the silly models that were practically draping themselves over him.  
He ran out of there, running past becks who was questioning where he was going and into the bathrooms. He stood in front of the mirror, his eyes bloodshot and his hair tangled. He looked a mess.  
  
Was what Betty said true? Was he going to be a father? Was Betty pregnant? It could only be his if she said it, but there was that stupid Wilbur guy that she used to date… he didn’t know what Betty got up with him. he shook his head, just the thought of Betty with another man made his skin prickle and made him want to throw up. Still, if she was pregnant with his child he would get to keep her, but in reality, it didn’t work like that.  
  
She would hate him now, he had gotten her pregnant and was too immature and too much of a jerk to actually come to her aid. How long had she known? Because they only slept together three months and one day ago, (he put it in his planner, which was about the closest thing to a diary that he had). Daniel didn’t know what was going on, but he wanted to find Betty, and tell her that it would all be okay.   
  
He wasn’t sure whether or not Betty wanted to keep this baby, but saying that he was going to be a father generally meant that she was. Would she even want him in this child’s life? Daniel’s head spun as he got in the town car on his way to Betty’s house.  
  
He ran up the front steps and knocked politely on the door, waiting for a reply patiently. When one didn’t come, he pounded on the door with his fists, turning up there drunk wasn’t the best idea. Eventually, someone did answer the door, it was Hilda. He was more afraid of her than he was of Betty’s dad. And Betty told her sister _everything_.  
  
“Hilda!”   
  
“huh, you came. Betty needs you! she didn’t think you would show up, and instead sleep with that model… Petra?” Hilda asked, while Daniel looked in guilt at his shoes.  
  
“so, can I come in?” Hilda moved aside, and pointed upstairs to Betty’s room. she was lying on her bed, with her hair fanned out around her, as she cried into her pillow. Daniel wished now, more than ever that he had neglected his partying lifestyle, simply so that while he broached this sensitive subject with Betty he didn’t smell like scotch.  
  
Daniel knocked on the door, stepping into the room, and pulling it gently behind him. he saw the light coming from downstairs and heard Hilda speaking to Ignacio. He heard Betty shift as she rolled over on her bed, staring at him, her eyes were red and puffy as she had been crying intermittently since she had left the club.  
  
“shut the door, my Papi doesn’t know yet,” Betty said, her voice croaking as she spoke. Daniel shut the door gently, moving over to sit on Betty’s bed beside her. he might still be drunk, and smell of scotch, but Daniel had sobered dramatically since he heard the news. He brushed loose tendrils of Betty’s frizzy hair out of her face.  
  
“Betty, what is going on?”  
  
“I really don’t know Daniel, but I am pregnant!” she said, while Daniel looked at her in bemusement.  
  
“is… is the baby mine?” he couldn’t describe his child as an ‘it’ they were more than that. They were going to be part of him.  
  
“I think so, they can do a test at the hospital. but I hadn’t had… sex, apart from with you, since before Christmas. I have the doctors next week to double check.” She cried more when she said it, while Daniel brushed those tears away.  
  
“how did you find out?”  
  
“you know the night of the printer… thing. I hadn’t been feeling well for a while, and I came home. Hilda read my diary where I wrote about us. And I realised how I was feeling was linked,” Betty tried to sit up and held her head, as she hadn’t drunk any alcohol, instead the noise from the club was enough to make anyone’s head hurt.  
  
“did you take a test?”  
  
“it was positive, but I don’t know how to find out if it is your baby or not… since…”  
  
“we slept together 3 months and a day ago,” Daniel filled in, while Betty looked at him in bemusement. Daniel looked around the room, and to Betty who had shifted so that she was resting against his chest. He didn’t need to party, if he had Betty. He just didn’t know how to broach the subject with anyone else.   
  


Would that mean that Betty finally wanted a relationship with him? would that mean Daniel would get a shot with the one woman who he never wanted to let go of?

* * *

  
  
The baby was Daniel’s; the dates lined up perfectly and Betty was somewhat relieved, somewhat concerned. She didn’t doubt Daniel’s ability to mature enough for her and their baby… but she doubted how the rest of the world would see it. this was exactly the type of thing she was trying to avoid by refusing to have a relationship with Daniel. Betty knew that they would call her a gold digger, and make every reference to her appearance they possibly could. She didn’t want her baby to grow up having all of that in their life.   
  
But they needed to be able to get through her pregnancy without alerting the press to the child’s parentage, or Daniel’s father, which would just cause unnecessary drama.  
  
They got out of the doctor’s office, Betty had begun to show more then, with her swollen belly standing out in front of her. Daniel couldn’t tear his eyes away, nor could her sister. But they still had to survive informing Ignacio. Well, to be more accurate Daniel had to survive telling Ignacio.  
  
They waited in the parking lot of the hospital, where they were being driven home in Hilda’s car (which she had to find in the parking lot first) the air was cold so Daniel had practically wrapped her in all the coats he could find as they waited for Hilda to arrive. Daniel had changed over the last week, he stopped partying, even though the model showed up half naked at his door, when he went back to his loft to get some clothes.  
He had stayed over on the couch, Betty claiming his drunkenness was a legitimate reason for why Daniel was sprawled out on the couch, and because he refused to let Betty sleep on the couch.  
  
He had practically been his own assistant at work for the entire week, getting Betty coffee and even offering her a foot rub. Betty refused, she didn’t know how to approach the subject of Daniel doting on her. to refuse the idea of a relationship was rooted not in Daniel’s faults, but in how the general public would see their relationship.  
  
Hilda eventually drew up in her car, opening the door for Betty to slide into the front seat. She sniffed dubiously when she got in the car, it smelt and it didn’t help Betty’s queasy feeling.   
  
“so, are you guys ready to tell Papi? you have a healthy baby, and you are going to be starting a life together,” Hilda said, smiling at Daniel in the rear-view mirror.  
  
“about the starting a life together thing? I don’t know whether or not we should do it?”  
  
“What? Have a relationship? Why not?” Daniel said, raising his voice in surprise, even Hilda looked over at Betty in surprise.   
  
“I just don’t know Daniel, imagine what people are going to say about us!” Betty said, not looking at anyone, instead at her feet.  
  
“Betty, people have been saying stuff about me before I was born! So please don’t worry about it, all you need to know is that I will be there for you, Betty… I-,” but Daniel couldn’t say it. he didn’t know how Betty was going to react. She was pregnant and the mood swings were atrocious already, but if she was panicking this much over him being there for his child, he couldn’t imagine what would happen if he said the L word.   
  
“I know, and that is the problem, I don’t want people talking about this baby. I want him to be safe,” Betty said, placing her hand protectively over her stomach. They didn’t know the sex of the baby yet, however Claire told her that Meade’s only have boys, so she would probably have a son.  
Betty didn’t try and stop Daniel telling his mother, she deserved some good news since she was in prison and the thought of a grandbaby was enough to cheer her up.  
  
“Betty, I know… but this will come with the territory, if you are having my kid then you are going to get hounded by the paparazzi,” Daniel said, sipping a coffee he had bought in the shop adjacent to the waiting room.   
  
“maybe I shouldn’t have your kid?” Betty suggested, not thinking about the phrasing of her words. She knew it was Daniel’s child since she hadn’t been physically intimate with Walter for about two months before her own intimacy with Daniel, however she could always pretend it was Walter’s child. Anything to keep her baby safe.  
  
“what!” Daniel yelled, which caused Hilda to swerve purposefully into a parking space on the side of the road and stare at Betty, who had just realised what she had said.  
  
“no, no! I meant, I could say the baby was Walter’s?”  
  
“no, they are my child and I don’t want Walter to pop up, claiming ownership,”  
  
“you do know it is a baby, not a Gucci purse?” Hilda interjected, which caused both participants of the sparring couple to stare at her. “I am just saying! Betty, Daniel is still the father, what I would have given for Santos to be adamant to stick around. Plus, you don’t want to uproot Walter’s life to tell him that?” Hilda said. Betty leant back in her seat in defeat, and looked at Daniel’s reflection in the rear-view mirror.  
  
“how do I keep the news of this child out of the press?” Betty asked, opening her hand bag and taking a sip of the water as Hilda restarted the car.  
  
“don’t tell my dad. He has had people come up to him a bunch of times and say they are pregnant with his child to try and get money, he might think you are doing that. He doesn’t know you would never do that Betty,” Daniel placed his hand gently on Betty’s shoulder, which caused Betty to involuntarily shiver from his touch. Her mind wandered when she was asleep, away from the logistics side to her and Daniel’s relationship, she just wanted Daniel… all of him.  
  
“that is exactly what I am afraid of!” Betty exclaimed, nearly tipping the water over herself.  
  
“I know, but my dad might not even consider me as the father,”  
  
“see this is part of what I am worried about! I am too ugly to have you even considered, people will laugh in my face,” Betty choked back a sob, while Hilda rolled her eyes and Daniel looked miserable.  
  
“Betty, you have got to stop this, you either want everyone to know, or you don’t… or you could just let things go and focus on your baby,” Hilda ordered. Betty nodded, swallowing as their house came into view. Time to tell Papi.  
  
They got inside, Betty peeling off her hundred layers, with Daniel’s assistance, when Papi came out of the kitchen, with a bowl full of soup.  
  
“Betty, I made you some lunch since you were feeling sick this morning.” He said, placing a kiss on top of Betty’s forehead, while Daniel watched. He saw how betty and Ignacio were together, and he knew if he stuck around then he might even have the chance to have that with his child. Partying might have made him feel triumphant over Alex, or as if he was getting back at Betty it left him feeling tainted and empty.  
Even watching Betty and her father made him feel whole, happy, as if he was filled with some sort of light that no one could take away. He wanted that more than anything, and with his best friend too. Daniel couldn’t imagine perfection in any other form!  
  
“thank you, Papi.” She looked over at Daniel, who was misty eyed and not necessarily concentrating on her right that second. “we actually have something to tell you,” she reached over and gripped onto Daniel’s hand. Ignacio’s gaze drifted to their entwined hands, as his eyes widened.  
  
“Papi… before you freak out, let us explain,”  
  
“I would really like to hear this explanation,” he said, walking into the kitchen. Betty followed him, still clutching a hold of Daniel’s hand. He squeezed her fingers in comfort. They sat at the table, with Betty placing the soup in front of her, Ignacio sat opposite, his face assuming a grave expression.  
  
“so, me and Daniel are going to have a baby,” Betty ripped the band-aid off, looking Ignacio in the eyes. His eyes widened and Betty felt a heavy sense of dread settle on her chest.  
  
“are you pregnant, Betty?” he asked, his voice rising an octave. Betty nodded, and clutched Daniel’s hand tighter. If she did it any more he was the one who was going to have to go to the hospital.   
  
“yes, Papi. Hilda took us to the hospital this morning, we had a check-up. I am 14 weeks pregnant with your grandchild,” Betty said, her hand breaking free from Daniel’s finally.   
  
“Betty,” Ignacio sighed, looking over at the nervous man in his $10,000 Prada suit that he wore (for some reason, unknown to Betty) to a doctor’s appointment, and his youngest daughter, calm even though she was just given news that would change her life. “how did you let this happen?” his tone was disappointed, more than Betty could bare.  
  
“I don’t know Papi, I was so careful, I just didn’t think,”  
  
“what about Walter, you two only recently broke up?” for some reason Ignacio was still kind to Walter, even after he had cheated on Betty. Betty just hoped he would be as kind when she was the one who cheated.  
  
“it was while me and Walter were still together,” Betty reluctantly admitted, hanging her head in shame.  
  
“Betty, was it to get back at Walter?” Ignacio’s voice softened as he looked towards Betty and Daniel. Daniel glanced at Betty in turn, as if urging her to answer. He wanted confirmation that it wasn’t the case when he and Betty made love.  
  
“no! god no, I think it was just because it was Daniel, and I didn’t mean to,”  
  
“Mr. Suarez, I didn’t mean for Betty to get pregnant, but I do love her, and we didn’t sleep together for any other reasons other than that she is my best friend, and I wanted to make her feel beautiful,” Daniel leant back in his chair, his smile faltering at Ignacio’s gaze. Meanwhile Betty was looking at him in confusion. He realised that he had never said those words out loud to her, he didn’t need to, they had always reached an understanding that didn’t require words.

  
He knew that Betty loved him, he knew it was platonic, but she gave no indication that it had changed, not even after they had slept together. She remained adamant that it would be too complicated.  
  
“Daniel, what are your intentions towards my daughter… and your child? It is your child, right? Not Walter’s?”   
  
“no, Mr. Suarez, it is mine. I want to help Betty look after this baby, whether or not she just wants money, or my support,” he trailed off, seeing the man smile slightly at him.  
  
“then, I wish you congratulations,” he smiled at them, and moved to stand in front of the stove, putting something to simmer over the flame. “as long as you plan on sticking around,” he waved his knife at Daniel, who swallowed and shuffled back in his chair slightly. Betty gripped his hand harder.  
  
“about that, me and Daniel need to have a little discussion,” Betty said, tugging again on Daniel’s hand.  
  
“wait, how many people know?” Ignacio asked, sprinkling some kind of spice into the mix.  
  
“about the baby? Hilda, and Mrs. Meade, oh and Christina” Betty answered, she knew that Daniel told his mother everything, so it was no surprise.  
  
“alright, Betty… how did the ultrasound go, and am I allowed to come to one?” Ignacio looked suddenly shy, but Betty grinned broadly.  
  
“of course, you can come! We didn’t know whether or not you would want to?”  
  
“Betty, it is my grandchild, it may not be under the best circumstances, however they are still going to be family,” Betty nodded, wiping a stray tear away from her face.  
  
“well, the appointment went well, I got a picture of it,” Betty rifled through her purse to produce the blurry image from it. she handed it over to Ignacio, who looked at it, his expression softening.  
  
“wow, another grandchild, is it safe to tell people yet?”  
  
“yes, it is, and we find out the gender of the baby at 16-20 weeks,” Betty grinned “sometimes babies are very uncooperative,” she patted her stomach, revelling the feeling of fluttering in it. this meant that the baby was kicking, the doctor had explained.   
  
“well, you were too Betty, we didn’t know whether or not you were a girl until you were born,”  
  
“I am pretty sure it is going to be a boy, Meade’s generally are!” Daniel laughed and Betty smiled at him.


	5. chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own Ugly Betty

* * *

CHAPTER 4 2007

* * *

  
  
they eventually managed to get away to talk privately about Daniel’s involvement with his child. They sat in her bedroom, well, Betty lay on the bed, having the sudden urge to lie down since she had mistakenly worn heels to the doctor’s office.  
  
“Betty, we have got to talk about this! do you want me to be involved or not? Because your dad seems to think it is a good idea and I agree with him,”   
  
“I know you do, but I am worried,”  
  
“Betty, I love you. I told you this, and if that isn’t enough for you to believe that I am capable-,”  
  
“I don’t doubt that,” she sat up, bringing her knee’s up as high as she could without her stomach getting in the way. The room was warmer than outside, because… despite it being march the New York weather was still chilly. Betty sat there watching Daniel’s facial expression change as he tried to comprehend the magnitude of the situation. Betty was doing the same.   
  
She was going to have a baby, Daniel Meade’s child. In about 6 months, she was due to give birth on the 18th of October of that same year. She would be 23, everything would be crazy to look after this baby, but she would love it. even if Daniel did leave to go back to his partying lifestyle.  
“Betty, what do you doubt then?”  
  
“I don’t want to be in the media, I am scared of people calling me a gold digger if I decide to have your baby. Because my child will be a Meade, and there is no way I can escape that, and now I am worried your dad will try and take my baby away,”  
  
“we won’t let my dad near your baby okay, and if everything kicks off then we will go somewhere, just us and our baby,” by now Betty was sobbing into her comforter while Daniel watched her. he was afraid to cross that line, to comfort her. it would all become too real then, it wouldn’t be something he could handle and then forget about the next morning.   
  
This was a child’s life, and he couldn’t risk messing that up.   
  
“I am not scared of your dad, and I love your mom. Just, I heard what he said to Alexis, and then payed her a lot of money to leave the company and Meade!” Betty said, still crying. Daniel couldn’t stand by and watch anymore, and leant over, wiping her tears away as he gathered her in his arms. It didn’t matter that she was getting his suit all teary, it only mattered that he was the one who was going to keep her safe. No matter what.  
  
“you don’t need to be scared. But we won’t tell him; maybe keep my mom updated about the baby, we could take her the picture of the baby,”  
“is she excited?” Betty asked, wiping her eyes, and reaching across to her bedside table to grab some tissues.  
  
“it is her first grandchild, she is ecstatic,” Betty grinned through her haze of tears, leaning her head further onto Daniel’s chest.  
  
“would they let me visit?” Betty asked, tilting her head slightly. Daniel nodded, and picked up the ultrasound image she still had clutched in her fist.  
  
“yes, do you have the copy of this?” he gently got it out of her hand and ran his finger across the shiny surface.  
  
“yeah, it is in my bag,”  
  
“I wonder if they will let her keep one, I could ask when we next go to visit,”  
  
“good idea Daniel,” Betty clutched his hand again, reaching down. he looked at their clasped fingers, smiling at how perfectly Betty’s small hand fit in his much larger one.  
  
“right… so can I still be involved?” Daniel asked gingerly, afraid of the answer.  
  
“yes, of course you can. But, I need to come up with a plan,” Betty got her notebook out of her chest of draws, as well as a pen.   
  
“okay… what about?” he shifted, so that Betty could rest the pad against her hands.  
  
“about what to do with this baby,” she looked him in the eyes again, smiling at the blueness she found there. She hoped their baby would have blue eyes too. “like how to keep it out of the media,”  
  
“okay… don’t tell anyone it is mine,”  
  
“people will start to ask questions. Amanda asked me if I had put on weight yesterday,” Betty sighed, remembering the catty comment from Amanda. She was going to have to get used to that, especially if it did come out that the baby was Daniel’s.  
  
“we need to come up with a believable lie for that. Also, tell my mom not to tell anyone else,” Daniel suggested.  
  
“are we going to own up eventually? I mean this baby might have a stake in Meade one day,”   
  
“do you want it to?” Daniel looked slightly affronted, and Betty remembered talking about how if he ever wanted a family it would be hard to distinguish those who wanted a relationship with him, rather than the ones who wanted him for his money.  
  
“I don’t know, I was just thinking… what would you want for your child?”  
  
“to not have the same upbringing as me,” he said bitterly, moving away from Betty slightly. “my mom loved us so much, but dad didn’t, and I think that is reason for what Alexis did,” Daniel said, smiling at her.  
  
“I am definitely going to love this baby, no matter what!” Betty said impassionedly, and leant over to kiss Daniel. she didn’t think, just did the thing she said she wouldn’t do. When her lips met his, there was the passion that Betty hadn’t felt anywhere else. It was Daniel, her Daniel. and it didn’t matter what people would say, just for that moment. They would figure the rest out later.   
  
They broke apart, the kiss, as passionate as it had been being relatively gentle compared to ones they had shared earlier, Daniel leant his forehead against hers as they listened to the beating of each other’s hearts.   
  
Daniel sat at his desk, while Betty was in Mexico. After the whole secretary’s day fiasco, he felt she deserved something more than a trophy. He didn’t think about it, he was too drunk… on love. He knew it sounded cheesy and stupid, but Betty had been the only thing keeping him sane for the whole time. things were even better now, but there was something plaguing on his mind.  
  
He was worried about Alexis, however since she was furious at their father, and seemed intent on exacting revenge on everyone else for doing so. And Wilhelmina was up to something, plus it was hard not to get distracted by Betty’s absence, so he might have employed the help of someone Betty tried to recruit in his playboy days.   
  
He didn’t tell him how to cope so much as gave him pills that would take the edge off missing Betty. He could do it, especially since MODE without her was unbearable, and it wasn’t like he could blow off dinner with a designer because the mother of his child needed him. but there was no one at her house, and he couldn’t just go over there to have the comfort of Betty.  
  
She was now about 6 months pregnant and showing… a lot. Betty had been asked about it, although in not too much detail since Walter had made his presence known before he moved away. Daniel was glad of that, because nothing was worse than the uncomfortable questions from Amanda which unfortunately hadn’t come too far from the truth. although there were a few rumours that she was a surrogate for someone, he didn't do anything to discourage these, since they weren't too bad. the one thing he knew was that thier relationship was sort of secret, he and betty still did couply stuff, but out of sight of the people of MODE, and the press. they weren't sure where they were, but it didn't stop him loving her.   
  


But the pills weren’t strong enough to distract him, to make him stop worrying about Betty on her way home, about all of that. Because he was terrified and couldn’t imagine life without her.

  
Betty heard the grating sound of her phone ringing, she had gotten to sleep finally, after 6 hours of comforting Hilda, and now she was being woken up again. Betty could bet that the baby was asleep.  
  
“hello?” she answered sleepily into the phone, her voice somewhat on edge from tiredness. She hadn’t even bothered to look at her clock, but judging from the glare of the streetlamps outside her bedroom window that it was still night.  
  
“Miss. Suarez, you are listed as his emergency contact,” Betty’s heart skipped a beat, the voice was a steady monotone, however underlined by emotion. What was going on? whatever it was, wasn’t good.  
  
“yes, that is me; Miss. Suarez,”  
  
“unfortunately, there has been an accident. Mr. Meade is in hospital; however, Miss. Meade is in critical condition.” She didn’t need to hear any more, before she had sprinted out of the room, and gotten dressed at lighting fast speed. She knew why Daniel had her listed as his emergency contact, because of the baby. She just wondered whether or not his father would be there.   
  
She got to the hospital, where she was greeted by nurses as she stepped into the ER. Betty was panicking now more than she could cope, and had come close to collapsing twice on the way to the hospital. As soon as she heard it felt as if all the breath had been knocked out of her body, and tears streamed down her face without her realising it. her Papi was still in Mexico, and she gave a rushed mention to Hilda before Betty practically ran into the cab.  
  
On the way, there, Betty didn’t even realise the journey, only enough to tell the taxi driver the hospital destination, while she remained in tears.  
Betty ran along the shiny polished floor, at moments it felt as if her feet barely touched the ground. Her only thought was on Daniel, since they had told her something much more terrifying. He had been in a car accident, but that wasn’t all…  
  
She got to the nurse’s station, as both Daniel and Alexis were going to be transferred over to intensive care, especially since Alexis hadn’t woken up and didn’t show any signs of doing so.  
  
She flagged down a nurse, unable to get into the rooms where she had been told Daniel and Alexis were. She wasn’t sure whether or not she had been put down as next of kin, seeing as she wasn’t married to Daniel, nor related.  
  
“excuse me,” Betty called upon a nurse, who was tall and willowy, with a sympathetic expression. However, when she saw Betty her expression changed into one that Betty recognised very well. one of a MODE girl.   
  
“yes?” she replied, although Betty could see she was expressing a giggle. More tears leaked out of her eyes, and Betty saw her reflection in the glass of one of the doors. She was a mess, with her glasses askew on her face, and her hair in an untidy ponytail, not to mention she had her puffy coat on over her pyjamas.  
  
“erm…” Bettys voice shook with emotion as she tried to spit the words out. “I was wondering which room Daniel Meade is in,” Betty bravely said, she didn’t know what else to say.  
  
“are you family?” and judging by the expression on the nurses face she knew that Betty wasn’t his fiancée or anything, which Betty knew since there was a glossy gossip magazine on her desk.  
  
“I am his… best friend,” the nurse gave her a look that was trying to be sympathetic, however it came out as critical instead, as she smirked at Betty.  
  
“I’m sorry, I don’t think that counts,” Betty knew that gently broaching the subject wouldn’t work on the stuck-up nurse.  
  
“what about the mother of his child?” Betty said confidently. What she didn’t bargain for was Mr. Meade standing behind her, hearing every word of it.  
  
“is that so, Miss. Suarez?” he said, and nodded to the nurse. “she can come with me,” he ordered, while Betty followed him down the corridor. She wasn’t sure what was going to happen, she was following the president of the company down a corridor, to where both his children were in intensive care. One of them was the father of her child, and her boyfriend, neither or which his father knew. But, Betty was certain she was going to keep her job, it was illegal to fire a pregnant woman, unless she was going to jail or somewhere else where the job would be otherwise unattainable. They got to another nurse’s station, this time the doctor met them.  
  
“ah, Mr. Meade, and you must be Miss. Suarez, his emergency contact,” the doctor nodded at them both, Betty clutched her stomach unconsciously. She was worried about the baby since her heart rate hadn’t slowed down since she had arrived at the hospital.   
  
“yes, what news have you got for us?” Bradford said, mentioning for Betty to follow him. they went to an office, where the doctor collected his notes. Betty was getting fed up of all the endless hallways, with doors that opened to places Betty didn’t know about. She felt trapped.   
  
“well, it appears that Daniel has only suffered a broken leg and a few superficial wounds. There is no internal bleeding. However, Alexis’s condition is worse. There was some internal bleeding, and superficial wounds. Although she seems to have sustained a head trauma and is currently in a coma, we are unsure when she will come out of it, but we have managed to stabilise her condition,” the doctor informed them, flipping through his notes.  
  
“so, is Daniel awake?” Mr. Meade’s voice seemed to be thick with emotion.  
  
“about that… Mr. Meade seems to have taken a number of a controlled substance, however there are no long lasting effects, and he should be expecting to wake up soon,”  
  
“drugs!?” came Betty’s shocked shout. She knew Daniel drank and used sex to get his high but she didn’t ever think that Daniel would actually use narcotics. She was beyond furious at him in that moment.  
  
“yes, Miss. Suarez, however he didn’t overdose, and we have reason to believe they are prescription medications,” the doctor looked between the publishing titan, and the tiny, yet heavily pregnant Mexican girl by his side.  
  
“right, when can we see him?” Bradford asked briskly while the doctor led them to Daniel’s room. once outside, Betty stopped on the threshold.  
  
“am I allowed in?”  
  
“you are the mother of his child, you need to be there.” Bradford said, his expression so cold and unchanging that Betty wasn’t sure if she had his approval or not. When they got into the hospital room, Daniel was coming around slowly. Betty nodded and walked up to his bedside.  
Daniel’s eyes flickered open when he saw Betty, before he registered her presence and put his hand over his face, pulling at the tubes.   
  
Betty guided it down to beside him again and remained frowning at him, unlike his father who seemed to be humbled seeing his youngest son in a hospital bed.  
  
“oh, god!” Daniel said, seeing Betty’s expression not wavering.  
  
“you are right, oh god! Drugs Daniel? drugs! How could you? of all the stupid irresponsible- you know I need you alive if you are going to help me look after this baby,” she said, while Daniel’s expression gauged shock, he pointed to his father with something akin to impending doom.  
  
“Betty…” he hissed, tugging on her arm.  
  
“I know about this baby, however I was not aware it was yours. I thought the rumours were just speculation,”  
  
“there are rumours?” Daniel asked, Betty hadn’t mentioned anything about that, which must have been a lie by omission, considering she didn’t tell him at all. Maybe this is why she kept him away from Amanda and marc, who were the most likely to say something incriminating.  
  
“yes, and Mr. Meade, I am so sorry. We were going to tell you, I just didn’t think that you would approve.” He looked between the pair, with Daniel’s hands resting on Betty’s stomach, making sure his child was still okay.  
  
“are you staying to look after your child?” Bradford asked. Daniel nodded, biting his lip.  
  
“yes dad, I am not going anywhere. Betty didn’t make me, I chose to do this,”  
  
“we are going to talk about this, however I am just glad one of my children are okay. Have they got any news on Alexis?” he managed to ask, just as the doctor stepped into the room.  
  
“there is no change, however you can go and see her if you wish,” the doctor said, checking Daniel’s own chart. Daniel looked around the room with a guilty expression on his face that had everything to do with how annoyed Betty was with him.  
  
“I think I may just do that,” Bradford said, moving out of the room with the doctor. Daniel looked at his father’s back sourly.  
  
“that didn’t go as badly as I expected,” Betty sat in the chair next to his bed, rubbing her stomach as she felt the baby kick.   
  
“no… that went worse. Betty, that was the calm before the storm, he makes you think everything will be alright and then… bam!” Daniel waved his arms around, turning to look at Betty’s disapproving expression. “what?”  
  
“Daniel, I think you are being a bit overdramatic, and I live with Justin and Hilda,” Betty stressed the last part for emphasis, which Daniel pouted at.  
  
“Betty, trust me. this is only going to get worse now that he knows. That is without the interference of the evil-mina, who is going to be the baby’s grandparent,” they both shuddered at the thought of it, while Betty bit her lip. The baby’s other grandparent was in Mexico, and would hopefully be back at home when the next heir to the Meade empire was born.  
  
“oh, wait! Don’t you think she is only with your father to get her hands, on Meade?”  
  
“well, it was MODE, until she realised my mom owns it… but, she is still. I think, I heard marc saying something about meetings with other magazines,” Daniel pressed his palm to his head and screwed up his face. Betty could see he was in pain however there was a much more urgent matter. Their baby’s safety.  
  
“this baby will be an heir, and that will distract from Wilhelmina’s shares,”  
  
“are you sure? This baby is my son-,”  
  
“or daughter,”  
  
“it is irrelevant,” Daniel said, however he traced circles on her stomach. “anyway, the baby might not have direct access,”  
  
“they will be a Meade, meaning they get a share, and Wilhelmina isn’t going to like that,” Betty said, looking over at Daniel. they had heard the general rumours of Wilhelmina beating assistants, however this baby could put her claims to the company in direct jeopardy… they had to keep the knowledge from her.  
  
“she might not know; my dad might not tell her?” Daniel suggested.  
  
“she could connect the dots especially since we are now dating, and making no secret of it,” Betty smiled and kissed Daniel’ cheek.  
“I thought we are still in an exploratory phase?” Daniel asked mockingly. Betty glared at him, and lightly flicked the skin of his arm in protest, ignoring Daniel’s whines of protest.  
  
“Daniel, your dad knows about the baby, and with something this big he is probably going to tell Wilhelmina, I just need to focus on getting my father home, I want him here for the birth of his grandchild.” Betty assured Daniel, before kissing him gently.  
  
“our poor baby, what kind of world is it going to enter?” Daniel responded, pulling Betty up to rest against his shoulder.  
  


“one where it’s parents will always love it, no matter what,” Daniel kissed her gently.

  
Being seven months pregnant was no mean feat, especially since Betty had to run around after Daniel who was being even more of a baby than he usually was about his broken leg. Something about guilt Betty reckoned, since Alexis had since come out of the coma, however with amnesia. Daniel was feeling responsible, because if it weren’t for his drugs then she wouldn’t be in it.   
  
Now Wilhelmina, who still didn’t know the baby’s parentage, Bradford had been having private meetings with Daniel about it, where both of them would come out of it, and not talk about it, much to Betty’s annoyance. Betty didn’t know when the truth was going to come out, so she had to just take it one day at a time. today that involved getting some food that didn’t make her puke, and the book back from Wilhelmina. Which… was at her apartment.  
  
Betty snuck in there, finding the book easily, even with an impressed Christina in tow. Who was being quite annoying, but everything annoyed Betty these days; since being heavily pregnant was no picnic. They looked around her room, marvelling at the riches of it, especially the very expensive bedding. Betty flipped through the book, growling when she couldn’t see any of the changes she had brought to Wilhelmina. How dare she! Poor Daniel was in hospital, while his sister was in a coma, which he felt responsible for since he was the one who took a suspected overdose, which is why he needed to be rushed to hospital. While Daniel was dealing with the guilt of that, and trying to help run a magazine Wilhelmina had taken over.  
  
“look at this, she didn’t use any of his ideas!” Betty said, flipping through the glossy pages, none of Daniel’s suggestions had even been used.   
  
“yes, yes, it is a tragedy, but – ooh! Would you look at this,” Christina held up some skimpy garment and Betty cringed.  
  
“Christina, ew! I didn’t need to see that!” Betty said, sitting on the bed as she felt her baby kick again.  
  
“alright luv, stop feeling sorry for yourself, is it because Danny boy can’t do anything with his leg all battered up?” she asked, Betty sighed. She had thought of that a lot, since it wasn’t easy for either of them. Betty was about to answer, when she heard Wilhelmina’s sarcastic voice  
through the halls, and the deeper tone of her bodyguard, Duane. Christina rolled under the bed, but a very pregnant Betty couldn’t do that, instead made a hasty dash into the massive closets along the walls of her bedroom. Betty realised that Wilhelmina probably had a walk-in closet, however she didn’t have time to try and find that. Plus, this was the only place permissible for her enormous stomach.  
  
She listened to what she only recognised was Wilhelmina and her bodyguard having sex, not her and her fiancée which would be less traumatic, since Betty now had an extra responsibility. She had to tell Daniel who had wanted Wilhelmina out of his family’s life for ages, especially since his mother had gone missing. They said at the prison that the sonogram picture had gone with Claire, so there was only hope that she was coming back to see her grandchild be born.  
  
They finished, after two hours and selective texts to Christina Betty listened as Duane lumbered off, where Wilhelmina seemed to be headed, until she turned back. Betty felt her heart stop in her throat, she was already avoiding the woman. Daniel had given her the very fear inducing news of having to go to dinner with Wilhelmina, his father and Alexis.  
  
Betty held her breath, and prayed Christina would jump out or something because Betty was pretty sure Wilhelmina was coming closer to her closet, and it didn’t help that she felt as if she was about to collapse in the closet any second.  
  
“I just need to get something,” Wilhelmina drawled, opening the closet door, seeing the cowering Betty. She raised her eyebrows when she saw Betty opening her eyes finally. “I thought I smelt a burrito,” Wilhelmina said, because she knew that no one was going to stop her. Betty moved out of the closet to beside Wilhelmina with an extremely guilty expression on her face.  
  
“Wilhelmina, I am so sorry, I didn’t mean to- I just wanted the book,” Betty held up the glossy mock-up of MODE for Wilhelmina to look at.  
  
“you would do anything to save your boyfriend’s job, wouldn’t you,” when seeing Betty’s surprised and horrified expression Wilhelmina enlightened her. “please, Betty. There is nothing I don’t know about- don’t forget I am engaged to the owner of the publications,” she raised her eyebrows.  
  
“I… I didn’t mean to hear anyone having sex,” Betty decided to be brave since Wilhelmina already knew, what was the worst she could do.  
  
“yes, Betty… I had sex. Now you aren’t going to tell Daniel, are you?”  
  
“obviously, I would,”  
  
“are you?” Wilhelmina asked with more menace in her voice, Betty swallowed. “I will make you a deal, if you go along with everything I propose at our family dinner party, your Papi will come home,” Wilhelmina said, while Betty felt a spark of hope. She could get her dad back home, maybe in time for the birth of her child. They had decided to keep the sex a surprise, even though Daniel was adamant that it was a boy. But what was Wilhelmina talking about? What was she was going to propose at the dinner party?  
  
“so, I have to keep quiet about this, and go along with whatever you ask of me?”  
  
“yes, but it isn’t like anyone will believe the ravings of a mad pregnant woman!” Wilhelmina said, as Betty’s heart dropped.   
  
“what do you mean?” Betty asked, shaking where she stood.  
  
“you will have to wait and see,” Wilhelmina informed Betty, who gulped.  
  
“Wilhelmina I don’t think,”  
  
“get out of my apartment, before I call the police,” she said, sweeping out of the room, into her private bathroom, before Christina extracted herself from underneath the bed. she looked at Betty in shock who was moments away from crying. Christina pulled her out of Wilhelmina’s apartment, before Betty’s tears fell.   
  
They got back outside onto the bustling streets of New York, where Christina bundled them into a cab. She held onto Betty’s hands and tried to make her speak to her, her normal bubbliness was replaced by concern.  
  
“Betty, I heard everything she said, I will stick up for you, I promise,”  
  
“thank you, but I don’t think it will count with Bradford Meade,” betty said somewhat bitterly, looking down, past her swollen stomach to her feet.  
  
“huh, you are probably right, but I am willing to argue it in a court of law, I have the texts to prove it,” Christina assured Betty who sniffed intermittently.  
  
“okay, do you think I should go to this thing tonight?” Betty fished the tissues out of her purse, dabbing her eyes.  
  
“I think you should, tell Daniel before the evil witch even has a chance to tell everyone her plan.” Christina said, with fervour in her voice, a sense of dread descending on them both.   
  
“what do you think that will be?” Betty was terrified of that, it seemed so ominous, but Betty couldn’t think of anything else that could go wrong with her life, as long as she had her baby. She might try to fire her, saying she couldn’t work with the baby, however Wilhelmina herself still worked when she had Nico. Well, she sent Nico away to boarding school, maybe Wilhelmina was going to do that to her precious baby.


	6. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> note: I am not a lawyer or have advanced knowledge of all the in's and out's of the law, so some things may not actually be correct, but, hey- this is fiction! another very angsty chapter, though!
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own ugly Betty!

* * *

CHAPTER 5: 2007

* * *

  
Daniel stepped up to the front steps of the Meade mansion, with a tense Betty by his side, ignoring how his arm was holding her protectively around her waist. She had been daydreaming all day, ever since he went back into the office, which was a tricky thing to do in a wheelchair.  
Betty, who was extremely pregnant and miserable for reasons she wouldn’t tell him. he suspected it was something to do about how Betty was about to burst, while her father was in Mexico and her family were going off the rails, starting with Justin who had employed Daniel’s basketball skills, which was completely unusual for the kid. Last time Daniel had spoken to him it was about whether or not Wilhelmina had dressing with her salad (Justin knew the answer anyway, he just wanted to quiz Daniel)  
  
“so, are you ready?” Daniel asked Betty. Betty stood there, clutching her stomach, looking blankly in front of her. she didn’t realise that Daniel was asking her a question.   
  
“I think so, I just am a little tired,” Betty finally responded to his prompting.  
  
“I know, but we are going to have to deal with the step-monster,” Daniel put on a brave face, while Betty didn’t dare look at him. they all moved aside when the door opened inwards, revealing Wilhelmina and Bradford. Both were smiling in a way that made Betty and Daniel cringe.   
  
“hi, dad,” Daniel said almost in fear of what was going to happen next.  
  
“hello!” Wilhelmina said brightly practically pulling them inside, as her nails dug into Betty’s upper arm. Betty bit back the tears that had been coming all day. She had gone back to mode, while Daniel was out at meetings all day. She sat at her desk in a state of shock, wondering about all the things that could go wrong, while Daniel was trying to run around after Alexis, following her awakening from the coma at the hospital, while the amnesia was making things quite difficult. She didn’t remember becoming a woman at all, which was quite tricky since none of them had really become comfortable with her transformation.   
  
Bradford and Wilhelmina stood there as the hosts, welcoming their guests, both of which were not in any way pleased to be there. Especially with Betty dreading the news from Wilhelmina. Daniel had his hand protectively on Betty’s stomach, while she flinched at her touch.   
  
“what is wrong baby? Don’t you feel good? because anything to get me out of this dinner,” Daniel suggested, putting on a pleading expression. Betty sighed, as much as she wanted to leave this disaster of a dinner party she couldn’t. she needed to listen to what Wilhelmina had to say to get her father home.  
  
“no, I am fine. Just hungry I think,”   
  
“right…” Daniel led her on through the house, while Betty followed behind him into the room, watching Daniel and Bradford interact awkwardly, until Wilhelmina declared that dinner had started.  
  
It was hot soup that Wilhelmina hired a housekeeper to make, and then let her take all of the credit. It was good soup, it surprisingly didn’t make Betty throw up. But as soon as that was over they had the awkward conversation between the starter and the main, not as awkward as heart breaking.  
  
“so,” Wilhelmina started, sitting up in her chair and addressing the table. This is the news Betty had been waiting for and dreading all day. No matter what she was going to remain calm, and not freak out, so whatever piece of information she could give that would make Wilhelmina change her mind. “me and Bradford had an idea about your baby,” she gestured to Daniel and Betty.  
  
Daniel looked at Betty in confusion, okay… so this wasn’t the news she was waiting for, Wilhelmina wouldn’t be that evil to involve her child.  
  
“okay, what is it? because we haven’t decided about the baby’s shares in Meade yet,” Daniel put his hand over Betty’s stomach, while Wilhelmina’s jaw tightened.   
  
“well, it has something to do with your child,” Wilhelmina looked over at Bradford and Betty could practically hear the thumping of her heart over everything else.   
  
“what has it got to do with our child?” Betty asked, smiling a terrified smile at Wilhelmina.  
  
“we were thinking,” Bradford began, putting his hand on his fiancée’s. “that we think it would be best for your child to be adopted,” Betty couldn’t hear after that, it was like someone had tuned out speech. She was still upright as she saw Wilhelmina’s triumphant expression. She was not going to stay calm.  
  
“no! absolutely not!” Daniel said, looking over at his father and Wilhelmina, both of which had assumed innocent expression.   
  
“son, we think this will be better for the child. With Alexis having amnesia and your mother being-,”  
  
“on the lamb,” Wilhelmina interjected, the smug smile returning to her face. Betty couldn’t stand it anymore, where tears ran down her face, and she felt like she couldn’t breathe. If she used whatever ammunition against Wilhelmina it would make her seem even more crazy.  
  
“yes, we think it is a more responsible decision to have the child adopted,”  
  
“in fact, we have some lovely people who have been looking to adopt a child for quite some time,” Wilhelmina said, looking between the pair.  
  
“you cannot do this,”  
  
“we already have, you haven’t shown any signs of commitment to Betty, and I don’t think it would be appropriate for you two to have a child, goodness knows how you two have managed to keep it out of the press,” Bradford said, Betty could feel her heart shattering. She couldn’t have imagined something so dreadful, she didn’t imagine something so dreadful.  
  
“dad, that can change, Betty said she wanted to take it slow,” Daniel argued, it was technically true. However, Betty couldn’t retaliate as Daniel’s words hadn’t hit her yet. She was still reeling from Wilhelmina’s. it felt as if she was underwater at that point.   
  
“it doesn’t matter. We cannot let this out to the media, so you don’t even have to sign the adoption papers,” Wilhelmina said, her voice cold. Betty couldn’t imagine what was going on they were the parents they had to sign the adoption papers. They had to, they were the parents. But then she remembered they were rich, Wilhelmina could get away with anything she wanted to, and she had, frequently.  
  
They didn’t need to it, as there were a million loopholes that Wilhelmina could get through, especially when she exploited Daniel’s past. He wouldn’t seem like a fit parent in a court of law. it wasn’t the same, she couldn’t afford a lawyer to fight for her, all Daniel’s money was his fathers. The reality hit her. they had lost everything.   
  
“however, it would help if you could sign the adoption papers,” Bradford said, sliding a sheet across the table. Betty swallowed and felt like she was on the brink of collapsing. She knew her family would try and fight, but then she might never get her father back… there were so many options, all most of them seemed wrong.  
  
“are they good people?” Betty squeaked, wondering what kind of life their child would have if they were stuck with some socialite and her husband that was probably sleeping with his secretary.  
  
“yes, comfortable, unable to have children. they live in England,” Wilhelmina said, smiling at Betty. She swallowed.  
  
“I will talk to my family about it,” Betty said, knowing there was no way they were going to agree. Daniel had a look of shock mixed in with betrayal on his face as he stared at her.   
  
“make sure to discuss it with your father,” Wilhelmina said, her face contorting with a wicked grin. Betty couldn’t recollect whether or not she left the room or just fainted at that point.   
  
  
Betty sat on her bed in her house in queens, her hands splayed across her stomach. She didn’t remember getting home, although the odds were on her fainting now, rather than just leaving the room with no memory of it. Betty wondered who had brought her home.   
  
She couldn’t believe Wilhelmina had tried something like this, but she just didn’t know whether or not to take the risk. She didn’t know whether or not her father would come home, or whether to ignore Wilhelmina’s prodding for them to sign it. all it meant was that they lost all hope of igniting a court case, because with the amount of dirt Wilhelmina had on everyone Betty wasn’t sure they would make it out with their jobs, much less their child.   
  
There was no point saying she couldn’t get away with it, since it was Wilhelmina slater and Bradford Meade. They were powerful, and had fistfuls of attorneys they could throw at any good reason. She didn’t have anything, not fancy lawyers, or leverage. They would all think that she was crazy when she used the only thing she had, which sounded preposterous. She couldn’t do it. she just had to work to get her father back to them, maybe talking to him would solve some of her problems.  
  
Suddenly her phone rang, it was her father, she looked over at the caller ID. She answered it quickly, breathing out a sigh of relief, her hands trembling, she didn’t want to tell her Papi about it while he was still in Mexico, since he was unable to do anything to help her.  
  
“hi, Papi,”  
  
“hello, Mija, I’m coming home,”  
  
“what!” Betty felt her heart soar, her Papi was coming home, he could help and support her with it. it was her child and she would protect it at whatever costs, nothing meant more to her than her baby. Except for her family, she knew that this child was her own blood, but she needed her Papi in her life, she couldn’t manage without him. “did you get your visa?” she finished excitedly. She wondered if Wilhelmina had worked that quickly, and she panicked. What if Daniel had signed the adoption paper?  
  
“no, I cannot wait that long, but I will find a way, I know people, and I have done it before,”  
  
“Papi! No, you can’t do that! It is illegal, and you need to be in here legally for your medication. Also, you know how they pack those trucks full of people, you could die,” Betty said, tears brimming in her eyes.  
  
“Betty, I have no other way. You and your sister need me! it could be months before I come back,” suddenly it went quiet and Betty started to frantically talk into her phone.   
  
“hello? hello? Papi?”  
  
“sorry, Mija, it was your aunt. I have to go now Betty, please don’t worry, I will be fine. Te quiero y tener cuidado, Mija.” He said before hanging up. Betty flung herself on the bed again, not even trying to stop the flow of tears. It was all going so horribly wrong. She was supposed to have her baby and Daniel, while going to her Papi’s citizenship ceremony. But, she wasn’t, she was going to lose her baby and possibly her father if she didn’t do something soon.  
  
Betty heard a quiet knock at the door, followed by the sound of someone shifting their weight right outside of it. there was another knock, slightly louder, this time. they didn’t try and force the door open, they just knocked again. Betty finally got up the courage to speak, although it sounded as if she was speaking with a heavy cold.  
  
“come in,”  
  
“Betty, are you okay?” Daniel said, walking into her room, seeing her tear sodden sitting on the bed. even with her protruding belly she looked so small. He wondered if their baby was going to be tiny too, their baby that they couldn’t keep. He hadn’t spoken to his father about it, yet. Mainly because he was afraid Wilhelmina was going to be there and he might actually try and kill her.  
  
Betty shrugged, turning away from him. she didn’t notice the food in his hand, since she had gotten in and thrown up all the soup. She didn’t know whether it was a side effect of the pregnancy, or because of all the trauma.   
  
“Betty, I made PB&J, it is all I could make, okay?” he said, passing her the plate. Betty still sat on the bed, not looking at Daniel or the plate. She didn’t want to, it was like giving up- showing Daniel how she really felt. she wanted Daniel to understand, but she didn’t want to make him understand.   
  
She couldn’t force him to feel how she did, she couldn’t tell him what Wilhelmina was doing with her bodyguard since no one would believe a mad pregnant woman anyway, Betty would be scorned and seen as insane. She didn’t know what she was at this point. It was a nightmare no one should have to endure. She was having her baby taken away from her, and she couldn’t run. She couldn’t deny it. she would even convince the world it was Walters child just to allow her to keep it. but, she couldn’t destroy Walter’s new life. He might have a wife and a family of his own now, he wouldn’t want Betty- who cheated on him- to come and screw that up.   
  
“thanks,” she croaked out, still toying with her cell phone in her hands. Daniel watched her movement.   
  
“are you going to eat it? you need to eat something Betty,”  
  
“I will, I promise,” she responded, moving the plate closer to her. Betty had no intention of eating now, she wasn’t even sure it would stay down.   
she wanted to tell Daniel about her dad. Because then, he would know they had no options where her father could fight for her. he was in Mexico and could be in danger, well… he was going to be in danger if she didn’t help.  
  
“I don’t believe you,” he said, sitting next to her. his solid form making the bed compress under him, it reminded Betty that a human being was there, next to her. not someone she had made up to spite her, or even one that was very real and just very evil. Daniel loved her, and this baby. He would want a solution that kept both the baby, and ensured her father wouldn’t have to re-enter the states legally.   
  
If she should be able to tell anyone it would be Daniel, he loved her, trusted her more than anyone. She felt the same way about him, no matter what happened. Even if their baby got taken away from them.  
  
“my dad called,” Betty said in a small voice, clenching her fists, and dropping the phone onto the carpet. Daniel’s eyebrows raised, while a small smile graced his lips. He was expecting good news. Betty couldn’t give him bad news, but she had to.  
  
“and?” she tried to ignore the hope in his tone.  
  
“he didn’t get his visa, yet.”  
  
“well, there is always hope. I will go down and bribe the state senate if I have to, especially if it makes it come faster. We need him here for the baby!” Daniel said passionately. Betty bit her lip to stop herself from crying.  
  
“he is going to come home anyway. He said he will find a way,”  
  
“no, Betty. We can’t let him do that, it is dangerous, not to mention illegal. If he gets caught he might never get his visa.” Daniel argued, placing one hand on her stomach. She tried to not flinch, since she felt as if she was leading Daniel on, every time she spoke or even thought about the baby. She felt like she was fooling herself.  
  
“I know, I don’t want him to do that, but he says he cannot wait any more.”   
  
“what can we do? I wasn’t serious about that bribing thing, but I will do it. apart from not really being on speaking terms with my father, my mom has connections.”  
  
“I know, but Daniel… I did get an offer of help,”  
  
“why the hell didn’t you tell me?” Daniel exploded, not really angry, more excited with a hint of exasperation in his tone. When he looked at Betty’s face, however, he gauged the reason why. “oh, let me guess, your dad comes home in exchange for our child?” Daniel said, the sparkle behind his eyes dimming immediately.   
  
“something like that,” Betty didn’t tell him about the other stuff. She didn’t know why, she could have used it at that moment, since Daniel would have believed her, no matter how distraught she was. They trusted each other, but obviously, she betrayed that.   
  
“so, plan of action… Wilhelmina is going to try and get our baby either way. What are we going to do? Leave the country?”  
  
“my dad…” Betty whispered, she couldn’t see a way out of it.  
  
“right…” Daniel didn’t say anything for a minute, instead took a bite out of the sandwich.  
  
“Daniel, what happened after I…”  
  
“collapsed? I took you home, which is hard to do in a wheelchair by the way and said I wished Wilhelmina would die,”  
  
“I bet she didn’t like that?”  
  
“No one messes with our baby, Betty, no one. But, my dad did freeze my account.”  
  
“what?” Bradford only did that when Daniel was being deliberately irresponsible, Betty didn’t know why the man would do it now. Daniel was sticking up for his family, surely that didn’t deserve a punishment. Ignacio was so proud of the former-playboy, that he even offered their house for Daniel to stay in. “when did he freeze them?” Betty continued, her voice getting smaller with every passing second.  
  
“shortly after I left. I think he knew I was going to go my normal route of fleeing the country, I found out when I tried to order take-out and my card was declined.”  
  
“you order takeout with a card, instead of cash like a normal person?” she looked as if she might giggle, even through the trauma of the evening.  
  
“hey… you are missing vital pieces of information,” Daniel argued, however scooted closer to Betty and kissed her.  
  
“fine. I do have a question: why did you suggest we leave the country?”  
  
“I wondered if you had any cash that we could use, and then we would have been able to escape.”  
  
“I don’t have nearly enough and my father still needs to come back from his own holiday,” Betty reasoned, punctuated by Daniel’s kisses. She knew he was only trying to make her feel better, the only way he knew how when money wasn’t involved.  
  
“okay. I spoke to Wilhelmina shortly after she froze the accounts. She rang me, and told me the people who are set to adopt the baby are really nice, also they can’t have kids,”  
  
“so, they are just going to take one of ours?!” Betty said angrily, while Daniel recoiled. Betty felt remorseful even after she had said it, it wasn’t fair. If they were really like that (which was debateable knowing Wilhelmina’s tendency to manipulate and blackmail people) they had every right to have a child as Betty and Daniel did.   
  
“Betty…”  
  
“I know, I am sorry. It is just we want this baby so much, never did I think for a minute about giving it up,”  
  
“I know,”  
  
“and now I am seven months pregnant and I don’t know what to do, it isn’t like I can just hop on a plane unnoticed. I have to have all sorts of checks to clear me for air travel,” she gestured at her belly and Daniel sighed. He hadn’t even thought of that when considering the escape was still an option.  
  
“I didn’t think of that,” Daniel sighed, holding his head in his hands. Betty bit her lip and kissed him on the cheek again.  
  
“we are too upset to think, and I am too tired to do anything else. I just don’t want Papi to go,” Betty said, moving slightly, finally taking off her jacket. Daniel helped her do that, kissing her forehead again, before he helped her lie down.   
  
“you need to tell him, that there are options,”  
  
“and what are those?” Betty snapped, not moving from her relaxed position however, “to give our child away because Wilhelmina doesn’t want to share the company?” she said, louder still. Her mind whirled, trying to get the words out about Wilhelmina and Duane but they wouldn’t come, they would lose their baby either way, only if she did that then Wilhelmina would prevent her father from coming home. And press charges for breaking into her house.   
  
Daniel didn’t get mad that she shouted at him, instead he got off the bed, before covering her with the comforter.  
  
“Betty, you need to rest,”  
  
“but, Daniel! I saw her,”  
  
“Betty- sleep now!” Daniel ordered, trying to get her to sleep since he thought she must have been delusional, she was obviously making stuff up now. he would have tried it too, if it even worked on Wilhelmina. But he couldn’t blame her, she was distraught since her child might be taken away… he couldn’t think of how he would have handled this situation.  
  
“no, I saw her! she slept with Duane, Nora Ephron covered for her!” Betty said, her words distorted as more tears rolled down her cheeks.   
  


“baby, go to sleep. We will talk in the morning,” Daniel insisted, leaving a tearstained Betty nodding, before settling down beneath the covers.

  
He went downstairs, seeing Hilda sitting in the kitchen, her eyebrows raised. She had been ignoring Justin slightly since the death of his father, although it was accidental she still felt miserable about it. but, she had turned it around, and given him a little pep-talk about how things were going to work. Especially with their father being gone.   
  
But, it wasn’t so easily sorted with Betty. He didn’t tell Hilda about her little outburst, since Daniel hadn’t told her about Wilhelmina’s plans as of yet. He had just explained that Betty had a traumatic experience.   
  
“hey, Hilda, how is Justin?”  
  
“I think he is doing better. He was worried that his father wouldn’t be proud of him,” she explained, stroking a finger over her manicured nails in thought.  
  
“are you kidding? Who wouldn’t be proud of a kid like Justin?” Daniel said, smiling at the way Hilda’s eyes lit up. Daniel would do anything to keep their baby, as he promised Betty, he would love it unconditionally.  
  
“thanks Daniel, that means a lot. plus, you are going to be a father, you should learn the ropes,” she smiled at him. the happiness Daniel felt dissolved almost immediately.   
  
“Hilda, I need to talk about that. Wilhelmina and my dad were saying something at dinner,”  
  
“what? And why do I have a feeling that I ain’t going to like this?” Hilda asked, her face set in fear.   
  
“they want us to give up the baby,”  
  
“what?” came Hilda’s shout, so loud that Daniel was sure that there wasn’t a single person who _hadn’t_ heard it.  
  
“please,” Daniel made a shushing motion, and for once Hilda didn’t retaliate. “she said she was going to do it anyway, even without our consent.”  
“she can’t do that! That is illegal!” Hilda pointed out.  
  
“it depends, the child can be removed from the parents if they are proved to be unfit, but don’t forget we are Meade’s- even Wilhelmina soon… so it is kind of a ‘get out of jail free pass’,” Daniel explained, while Hilda covered her mouth with her hand.  
  
“you aren’t unfit, though and you really want this baby,”  
  
“I know, but she could use anything against us. Like, how I used to be a playboy, and your dad’s immigration stuff,” he spoke gently, not wanting to incur the wrath of the queen’s princess that hid in both the sisters, but in Hilda it didn’t really… hide.  
  
“right… is there any way you could keep your child?”  
  
“not unless Wilhelmina dies or something, but I don’t think I can afford to go to jail, baby or no baby,” Daniel explained, wishing right now that Wilhelmina would die, thus not marry his dad. If only what Betty said earlier had been true.  
  
“no, please don’t get put in jail. We need you, Papi is worried his visa isn’t going to come at all,” Hilda said, again playing with her nail. Daniel didn’t know in which order to tell Hilda, about the conditions for the adoption with Daniel and Betty agreeing to it, or Ignacio’s proposed plans for escape.  
  
“he called Betty, later on… he is planning on coming anyway,”  
  
“what? He could get hurt, or killed! And he wouldn’t be allowed back if they caught him,” Hilda started to panic, which is when Daniel assumed it would be a good time to tell her about the other conditions.  
  
“Wilhelmina said that she could get his visa easily, if we gave up the baby voluntarily.” Daniel said, not enjoying the shocked look on Hilda’s face.  
  
“wow, how can she do that? And how does she know?”   
  
“her dad is a senator, so she can do anything she want’s really. And she is Wilhelmina, she probably has all of New York bugged.” Daniel explained, folding his arms on the warm surface of their kitchen table.  
  
“what are you going to do?” she asked sadly.  
  
“I think I might have to give up my child… either that or kill Wilhelmina,” Daniel joked, even though he could see that Hilda clearly wasn’t in the mood.  
  
“you aren’t going to be much use to anyone in jail.” She said curtly, before dropping her mug into the sink. Daniel wondered why it didn’t break, because everything around him seemed to be collapsing.


	7. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own ugly Betty!

* * *

CHAPTER 6: 2007

* * *

  
“urgh, Daniel you didn’t have to fire him!” Betty said, annoyed at Daniel who had promptly fired the sandwich guy, just because he didn’t give her enough sun dried tomatoes. Well, that and because she asked him to. It wasn’t fair for him to disrespect her, especially when she was nearing full term and shouldn’t even be at work. She was coming as Daniel’s plus one to the black and white ball that evening.  
  
The event had been delayed since Wilhelmina only wanted to participate in it, when her and Bradford’s wedding was back on. Daniel thought he could use the window of opportunity, however it transpired that it was simply postponed.  
  
So far, the events have been as thus: henry came back (much to Daniel’s dismay) as Charlie was also pregnant. Daniel was delighted about that, since it meant that henry was more likely to leave Betty alone.  
  
Alexis had gotten her memory back, after Daniel had lost several advertisers as he refused to not stick up for his sister, and how did she repay him? she went and got all friendly with their father again, once again the golden child.  
  
They had signed the adoption Papers, while Ignacio came home the very next day. The baby would be with them a week, until she was given to the family. Daniel felt it was a bit soon, but it was so that everyone could say goodbye. He didn’t know what he was going to do, but every time he looked at Betty’s stomach a part of his heart broke a little more.  
  
They had told Ignacio and he thanked them with the quiet reverence that only happened when something awful did. And it was true. Daniel wasn’t sure how they could move on from this… but they had to. Because you couldn’t go back.   
  
“Betty, you basically asked me to fire him!”  
  
“no I didn’t, I didn’t mean for him to lose his job!” Betty reiterated, tears threatening in her eyes. Being nearly nine months pregnant, as it was early October made you weepy. He didn’t even know why she was at MODE, especially when she should be resting for the baby’s arrival. And the black and white ball which was later that day.   
  
“Betty, please. I don’t want any extra stress put on you. go home! I am picking you up at eight, and you might need to sleep before then,” Daniel tried to convince her, rubbing her back slightly. She flinched from him, painting an annoyed expression on her face.   
  
“Daniel, I am pregnant, not an invalid,” she said crossly, trying to fold her arms over her large stomach. Daniel grinned before assuming a serious expression.  
  
“I don’t care, do you want me to call your dad? Because you called me at three in the morning saying you couldn’t sleep and you wanted dill pickle flavoured chips,” Betty looked crossly at him, before making to move out of his office, turning back slightly at the last minute.  
  
“just make sure you get Gio his job back,” she ordered while Daniel nodded, running his hands through his hair. They had been on edge ever since the horrible news, he didn’t know whether or not his and Betty’s relationship would be able to survive.   
  
Betty stepped out of Daniel’s office, almost crashing into henry on the way out, who stopped her. by now everyone at MODE had gotten news that she was having her baby adopted, which led to the superstitions of her being someone’s surrogate. She didn’t respond to any of the comments or answer any questions.   
  
Betty didn’t mind the surrogate rumours since she felt like a good person. She was giving her baby to a couple who really wanted it. her baby would be safe, and well. she would be fine.   
  
“hi Betty,” henry nervously straightened his glasses, Betty didn’t respond and looked at her feet. She didn’t hate henry, although some part of her that had disappeared a long time ago that had a crush on him would have been appalled at the lack of blushing and giggling in his presence.  
  
“hey,”  
  
“are you okay?”  
  
“yes, I need to get ready for the black and white ball… bye henry,” Betty said morosely, now she was thinking about her poor baby. She turned away and went to the elevator, when she felt a pain in her side.  
  
Her immediate thoughts were to the baby, and what on earth was going on. there was such a thing as Braxton hick’s contractions, however Betty didn’t know whether or not she was actually having them. No, this felt stronger. But it had stopped, and Betty could once again breathe normally.  
  
What did Hilda say? ‘if you need to ask, that means you aren’t in labour’ she sighed and slumped slightly against the wall of the elevator. She was terrified of having the baby, not because of the pain of the birth, but the heart break she would have to withstand after.   
  
It would have happened either way, just this way she got her Papi home, and the secret knowledge that she one day, could find her child. She didn’t want anything else but longer with this baby.  
  
Surprisingly, she had met the people Wilhelmina had spoken about and (even more surprisingly) there were exactly as shown on the tin. A nice couple who came from England and had a dog as well as a townhouse in London. they didn’t know all the details of the complex Meade lives, and were desperate for children. they promised to look after Betty’s baby. They were even going to let her name it. that should seem like a right, but it felt like a privilege, as the baby would be carrying around a piece of her forever.

* * *

  
  
Daniel arrived at her door, his crooked smile on as he waited for Betty, although there was nothing in their lives to feel smug about. his accounts were still frozen, Ignacio hadn’t got his citizenship yet, and their baby was being taken away from them.  
  
Hilda smiled as she let Daniel in, gesturing to up the stairs were Betty was coming down in a traditional pre-party like fashion. She was wearing a beautiful flowy purple dress, that he had gotten for her. it was even more beautiful on the real thing, his very real girlfriend.   
  
“hey,” he smiled at Betty who gave him a pained smile in response, as she walked further down the stairs. She got to the bottom, where Daniel immediately kissed her. “are you okay?”  
  
“I’m fine, just tired,” Betty said, deciding not to tell Daniel about the pains in her belly, which she had googled and were about 70% sure they were Braxton Hicks contractions, either that or the real thing. Betty didn’t want it to come, she didn’t want her baby to be taken away.  
  
“right, I have to town car ready. And the press will probably be all over you since you are wearing purple,” Daniel kissed her again, more firmly this time on the lips, before they were interrupted by a very annoyed Hilda.   
  
“you honestly think I would be caught dead in black and white?” she asked, giggling before they walked out to the car. “also, finding maternity ballgowns is really difficult,” Betty kept on saying as they slid into the warm seats of the town car.  
  
“yeah, I didn’t think of that,” Daniel kissed her again, rubbing her belly. “jeez, the baby is going nuts down there,” Betty felt like saying it was because it wanted to be let out of there, but that would just unnecessarily alarm Daniel.  
  
“right on with the show,” he laughed slightly at her, pulling her out of the car when they arrived. The paparazzi immediately swarmed, while Betty resisted the temptation to hide in Daniel’s jacket.  
  
“I forgot about them,” she whispered, letting him pull her aside and off of the red carpet leading them into the building.  
  
“don’t worry about it, as far as anyone knows you are my very pregnant assistant, who is also a surrogate for someone. I am surprised that you are allowed out,”  
  
“the doctor didn’t say anything about bed rest, and the day before Justin was born Hilda was getting her hair done,” Daniel chuckled at that. He loved Betty’s family, they were far more together than his own at the moment, especially because even though the decision had been made and on surface there was an uneasy truce, Daniel was still furious with his father, and especially with the devil reincarnate Wilhelmina.  
  
“okay, fine… lets go,” he insisted, pulling her with him. they stepped into the crowded hall, trying to avoid Wilhelmina who was greeting everyone with a fake smile and an even faker face. Daniel and Betty lurked around the outside, eventually getting caught by other socialites who were desperate to talk to Daniel. as Betty, would have guessed the main topic of discussion was her.  
  
Suddenly she felt someone’s hand on her shoulder and she jumped in shock. Which just made the pain start up again,  
  
“ow, hello?” she turned around to see two masked figures looking at her. this is why Betty hated the stupid black and white ball. Everyone was wearing masks and it was totally terrifying.   
  
“Betty,”  
  
“Mrs. Meade?!” Betty said, in shock, but she felt the older woman’s hand squeeze her shoulder just a little bit more.  
  
“please dear, if you wouldn’t mind keeping quiet? After all I am internationally wanted,” she asked, and Betty nodded. “anyway, I think you should call me Claire, I think it is only fair since you are carrying the next Meade,” Claire said, before Betty felt the hot tears bubble up in her eyes.  
Before she knew she was crying, hot tears spurting down her cheeks. Betty looked around her, trying to see Daniel, however he was busy talking to some woman across the room from her. she felt unwanted, but it wasn’t as if Daniel was the one who told her to stay out of the way. She was doing that deliberately and that only made Betty cry more.   
  
“dear what is wrong?” Claire asked, spinning Betty around to face her. Betty kept on crying since she couldn’t stop it now, she couldn’t tell Mrs. Meade since she didn’t know how.  
  
“mom!” came Daniel’s surprised whisper as he appeared beside Betty.  
  
“Daniel what is going on?” Claire asked, pointing to Betty, who kept sobbing.  
  
“erm… Wilhelmina, she is going to take the baby away,” Claire paled and Betty felt the baby shift while there was another pain.   
  
“what? How is she going to do it?” Claire asked.  
  
“she was going to take it either way, but if we signed it them then she would let Betty’s father come back from Mexico, and he has. Because we signed them.”  
  
“why would you do that? There are tons of options,” Claire looked incredulously between Daniel and Betty, who were a little afraid of looking at each other.  
  
“he froze all my accounts, and we couldn’t afford lawyers, and I didn’t know how to contact you, sorry mom,”  
  
“Daniel, I am so sorry! I should have been there for you, you are my son and Betty is good enough my daughter. Is there anything we can do?”  
  
“no, they are signed, and we have met the people, they are really nice,” Daniel said, just before he was cut off by the boom of the speaker. Wilhelmina was standing up to talk, but Daniel wasn’t listening. He was focused between his mom and Betty, who both looked like they were near tears.  
  
When Wilhelmina finished her speech, Betty felt her stomach clench again, and the pain was back. Only it was so much worse, and accompanied by a seeping wetness down her legs. Maybe it wouldn’t last forever, but they would just have to move on.  
  
“Daniel,” Betty tugged on his arm, seeing Betty look up at him with pain written on her face.  
  
“Betty, what is going on?”  
  
“I think the baby is coming,” she whispered, before everything descended into chaos.

* * *

  
  
Daniel looked around the hospital room, where Betty was lying in the bed, looking defeated, with his mom by her side, and him by her other side. he had their baby, which his mom got to see her being born.  
  
His daughter, when he was sure he had never loved anyone more than the three people in this room. she was perfect and tiny, but it didn’t even matter that she was born week and a bit early on October the seventh, at 3:30 am. She was perfect and adorable, weighing 6 pounds 4 ounces. Betty’s family had gotten stuck in traffic, but his mom could be there for the birth and Daniel had to be dragged into the delivery room to stop him punching Wilhelmina.  
  
“Betty!” came the shout of her sister, as she shoved her way into the delivery room, followed by Ignacio and Justin. Everyone knew that Betty didn’t get to keep Rosa. She didn’t get to keep her darling daughter. Daniel’s claims that the baby was a boy had been in vain, since he came out with a tiny little girl. With a head, full of black curls and… big blue eyes.   
  
She practically screamed the room down when Hilda burst in with a leap of excitement, while Betty pulled Rosa into her arms and cradled the baby, gently toying with her tiny hands, trying to stop her from squealing. The baby stopped crying when she was in Betty’s arms, instead she snuffled and pressed her head into Betty’s chest.  
  
“she’s hungry,” Hilda observed  
  
“I know, but she needs to be bottle fed. She is only here a week,” everyone looked down at Rosa who was in her pink blanket. She was only a few hours old, but everyone had already taken pictures, including Claire. She said she didn’t care if she got arrested, she was going to be there for the birth of her first grandchild.   
  
“can I hold her?” Hilda asked, and Betty nodded. They weren’t going to take her home, she was going to stay in hospital until Friday, before she was taken to her new home. But they could all give her a memento of their lives so that she could find them if she wished. Betty passed the baby over, cradling her head she protested, waving her tiny fists.  
  
Hilda held her for a moment, looking down at the new baby in her arms and smiling. But it was a sad smile, everything felt as if it had fallen apart at the seams, and nothing else could be right. Betty didn’t know what to say to Daniel, but she couldn’t continue their relationship any longer, she needed some time alone. Whether it was years or days was irrelevant, only that they couldn’t continue to be the way they were.  
  
Something had changed, and it wasn’t only Rosa’s absence, because she was what ultimately brought them together, because sometimes it took something as miraculous as Rosa to make two very stubborn people admit that they were deeply in love with each other.  
  
She loved her daughter, but it wasn’t right to be with Daniel without Rosa. He was her father, she couldn’t be in a relationship with Daniel without including Rosa, but it didn’t matter because in the beginning all they had was each other, and in the end, that was the only thing that seemed to matter. But also, the only thing that made it all so much more painful.  
  
She had to stop her and Daniel, it wasn’t right. But, she would still try and hold onto him. she wouldn’t just let go completely, she wasn’t going to give up and disappear. That wouldn’t be fair, she was going to be there for him, as his friend; because that is what he deserved. He deserved someone who he could start a fresh with, not her.  
  
Daniel was fighting with Alexis for trying to kill his father, fighting with his father for taking his baby. His mom was running away again, as soon as she left the hospital, Daniel and Betty didn’t fight it. and everyone, even marc, hated Wilhelmina for what she had done (Justin had enlightened marc to the whole sad, sorry tale as soon as he found out)  
  
But people were still being nice, treating Betty as if she would break apart at the seams, as if she was made of glass. She felt like it. she felt like one wrong word and she would shatter in whoever’s hands. so, people were being kind and gentle… most knew that this was the worst type of torture devised for anyone.   
  
Betty got to do the planning, got to look at swatches for colour in the nursery, which was going to be in Daniel’s loft since they hadn’t decided if they wanted a bigger house or not. She still got to look at baby clothes, but they were going to be given to the people who would look after her baby.  
  
Even Amanda was being nice, as she too had joined the crowd in the waiting room. she now knocked at the door, and stepped into the room. she was still wearing that ridiculous red dress that marc had managed to salvage from when it got torn off.  
  
“Betty, I just wanted to say hi, me and marc know the truth, but I wanted to tell you that we aren’t going to tell anyone else, ever.” Amanda assured her, while everyone stared at the small figure standing at the end of Betty’s bed. Betty looked up in surprise.  
  
“thanks Amanda,”  
  
“so, where is she?”  
  
“does everyone know it is a girl.” Betty asked, shocked that the news could get out so fast.   
  
“again, just us. Justin told marc the minute we met these guys at the hospital,” Amanda said, while Hilda glared at Justin who shrugged. Rosa was now in a crying Ignacio’s arms.  
  
“right, do you want to hold her,”  
  
“yes please,” Amanda said looking at Rosa. Amanda had never been nice before, but she was now, and cradled the baby in her arms “she is adorable, what’s her name?” Betty was giving Amanda a second chance since she needed it, and so did Betty.  
  
“Rosa Claire Suarez,” Claire smiled at Betty, who was smiling sadly in unison.  
  
Friday arrived. It was cold outside, with rain that beat the window’s intermittently. Betty didn’t admit it, but she wished the weather would be brighter, since it might take the edge off the pain she was feeling.   
  
For the last five days from Rosa’s birth on the Sunday Betty and Daniel had been in a bubble, where it was just them and Rosa.  
She cried a lot, but Betty wondered it that was because she could sense the sadness in the room and wished it would end. Betty wished it would end. Because nothing seemed to be right. When she looked out of the window, she didn’t expect to see New York, instead some foreign land where everything could be okay.   
  
She didn’t know how to cope with the sense of loss, and neither did Daniel by the looks of it. they hadn’t been themselves together in the last few days. Being separate so that Rosa would have a sense of who they really are. Because Daniel had a good heart.  
  
They had collected things to put in her baby box, things from each person who meant the most to them in the world. While they had pictures to remember her by and other stuff, her name written a thousand times on the back of a notebook, not dissimilar to the one that started this all.   
They couldn’t give the box to Rosa, or a letter since it breached the terms of their adoption. But Betty was going to give something anyway, because she knew what she could give to her baby girl.  
  
Her necklace her mother gave to her, before she was taken away from her, it was different than Rosa’s story, but it was nonetheless important. Because Betty believed that she would always be able to find her baby girl again.   
  
Because sometimes there was nothing stronger than love. Nothing worse than unending pain and guilt. But there was nothing she could do.   
The people came, all smiles that were trying their best to be sad and sympathetic, however could not disguise the unbridled joy that Rosa would bring to them. She was going to keep her name, although the Suarez part would disappear.   
  
They didn’t know the conditions of acquiring Rosa, because they were good people and Betty didn’t want to implicate them. It wasn’t worth it to make them feel lousy just because she couldn’t have her daughter back.   
  
She said goodbye to Rosa, gently cradling her one last time as she kissed the baby on her forehead, watching her wriggle in protest and reach her arms up to reach her mom. Betty held her close to her chest, and could feel the tired baby start to fall asleep against her chest. The only reason why Rosa was being adopted a week after as it took a long time for the couple to arrange the travel and to actually arrive.   
  
They stood in the doorway, smiling slightly at Betty and Daniel, not to mention Rosa, who was fast asleep against Betty’s chest. This was the last time her baby was going to fall asleep on her,  
  
“hello?” the woman said, moving into the room, smiling at Betty and Daniel. her husband hovered behind her. they were both blonde and perfect looking. Both had slim figures, with blue eyes and huge white smiles. Betty’s hands flew to her braces instinctively. She looked like one of the women she thought Daniel would end up with. They had met them before, but didn’t notice it properly, seeing only the pain they would feel once Rosa was gone from their lives.  
  
Betty grimaced, she didn’t want to leave her baby girl with people like that. It would be too hard because she would always have the memory that Rosa was going to be in such a better place. But, when she looked into their eyes all Betty could see was sadness and the gleam that lit their whole faces up with happiness when they saw Rosa.  
  
They sat beside her bed, the guy placing his hand on top of his wives’ hand. Betty saw the small tarnished ring on it, they weren’t rich in any way, they lived in the suburbs of London, a cheaper neighbourhood. when they saw Rosa, the woman bit her lip and smiled, tears filling her eyes.  
  
“wow, she is so beautiful,” she said, as Betty nodded. She was just glad they thought her daughter was. She couldn’t bear it if these stunning people who looked like models would scorn her baby the way people did to her.  
  
“I know,” Betty said softly, pulling Rosa away from her chest as the baby woke up and sleepily protested. She blinked at the strangers, her rosebud lips pursing and her big blue eyes blinking. “I love you,” Betty held Rosa closer to her, before passing her to Daniel who murmured how much he loved her too. He held her closer to his chest and kissed the top of her head.  
  
“she has your eyes,” the man said, smiling at Rosa.  
  
“yeah, she does,” Daniel said, as he passed the baby over to Betty as she gave her a last hug.  
  
“please take care of her,” Betty said, picking her up and handing her to them.  
  
“of course,”  
  
“are you still going to keep her first and middle names?”  
  
“yes, we are. She is going to be Rosa Claire Finch. I like those names, they are very pretty,”  
  
“thank you!” Betty and Daniel said simultaneously. Betty then cleared her throat and united the necklace around her neck, before pressing it into the palm of the woman, while her husband cradled Rosa.  
  
“please take this, just this, I am not asking for anything else?”  
  
“of course,” the woman said, looking surprised at the thought of not accepting it.  
  
“it was my mothers, she was also called Rosa. I just want to say thank you, I really believe she will have the best life,” Betty sighed, before  
moving on the bed. she knew it was thanks to Daniel’s family that she had been allowed to stay in hospital with Rosa until she was adopted.   
  


“of course, I understand. Thank you, for letting us look after your little girl, I promise you she will be safe,” they said, while Betty and he waved Rosa out of the room.


End file.
